Sponsored Links

No fibre services planned - any options?

smigg

Casual Member
Hi all,

I've got a bit of a problem that I haven't been able to resolve anywhere else. I live in one of the rural areas of Stoke-on-Trent in a cul-de-sac just off a main road in an 1980s build estate. The main road that runs past the end of our road has fibre available for most of its length, however there is no fibre in any of the cul-de-sacs. In fact the fastest speed we can get on fixed line is around 6.5mbps. There are no plans to run fibre into our street, or any of the cul-de-sacs, and when I contact Openreach about this they said that they are waiting "for the next technology to be widely available" before they will even consider it. Virgin is also not available on the estate. I've signed up to cablemystreet and have encouraged others here with the same problem to do the same.

I currently run my broadband through an LTE router with an "all you can eat" data package on a SIM card, and that gives me around 17mbps.

My question is, what other options can I consider? Am I stuck waiting for Openreach/Virgin to decide that it is profitable to extend fibre coverage into the road? I've contacted SuperFast Staffordshire who are a local organisation who look at funding some options, but they have said because some of the estate is covered, we're not eligible for any help. Also, the "crowd-fund" fibre rollout isn't an option as there isn't enough of an interest locally as people feel it's too cost-prohibitive.

I really need a fast connection (at least 50mbps) and I'm a fairly heavy data user so also need an unlimited package. I feel like I've looked at all the options but I'm sure I must have missed something. Any suggestions?

Thanks
Graeme
 
By the sound of it you've already run the gauntlet of potential alternatives and come up empty, which leaves little else that could be recommended. The Government's 10Mbps+ USO might force an upgrade in the future but that won't be made available until 2020 and we're still waiting on details of the final supplier choice.

Crucially if you can't encourage the community to engage more than there's little hope of any co-funded alternative builds. However I do know that Staffordshire are tentatively planning for another extension of the Superfast Staffordshire project, but we don't currently know when they'll announce details on that:

https://www.ispreview.co.uk/index.p...s-96-superfast-broadband-coverage-target.html

One other thing you could consider is whether your current mobile data link and package is the best one for that area. A different operator may have a strong signal or more capacity, which would result in better speeds, although you have to be mindful of the data caps.
 
Sponsored Links
Do you know anyone that lives on the main road where fibre is available? If so you might be able to use a point-to-point wireless link to get a connection between your houses? Then it is just a matter of either sharing their connection (presumably sharing the costs), or getting them to install a connection just for you. It needs some trust between you, and is almost certainly against any ISP's T&Cs, but I know people who have this approach working.
 
Top
Cheap BIG ISPs for 100Mbps+
Community Fibre UK ISP Logo
150Mbps
Gift: None
Virgin Media UK ISP Logo
Virgin Media £24.00
132Mbps
Gift: None
Shell Energy UK ISP Logo
Shell Energy £26.99
109Mbps
Gift: None
Plusnet UK ISP Logo
Plusnet £27.99
145Mbps
Gift: None
Zen Internet UK ISP Logo
Zen Internet £28.00 - 35.00
100Mbps
Gift: None
Large Availability | View All
Cheapest ISPs for 100Mbps+
Gigaclear UK ISP Logo
Gigaclear £15.00
150Mbps
Gift: None
YouFibre UK ISP Logo
YouFibre £19.99
150Mbps
Gift: None
Community Fibre UK ISP Logo
150Mbps
Gift: None
BeFibre UK ISP Logo
BeFibre £21.00
150Mbps
Gift: £25 Love2Shop Card
Hey! Broadband UK ISP Logo
150Mbps
Gift: None
Large Availability | View All

Helpful ISP Guides and Tips

Sponsored Links
The Top 15 Category Tags
  1. FTTP (5473)
  2. BT (3505)
  3. Politics (2525)
  4. Openreach (2291)
  5. Business (2251)
  6. Building Digital UK (2234)
  7. FTTC (2041)
  8. Mobile Broadband (1961)
  9. Statistics (1780)
  10. 4G (1654)
  11. Virgin Media (1608)
  12. Ofcom Regulation (1451)
  13. Fibre Optic (1392)
  14. Wireless Internet (1386)
  15. FTTH (1381)
Sponsored

Copyright © 1999 to Present - ISPreview.co.uk - All Rights Reserved - Terms  ,  Privacy and Cookie Policy  ,  Links  ,  Website Rules