Southwark Council has signed a deal with Hyperoptic to deliver full-fibre broadband to homes and businesses in the area.
The partnership will provide over 100,000 residents with full-fibre broadband access, including 53,000 residential homes and 1,000 commercial properties and as a result of servicing these buildings, Hyperoptic’s network will also cover an additional 46,000 homes and businesses.
Hyperoptic already covers 22,000 homes in Southwark. Under the block agreement, full-fibre broadband will be deployed across the entire council-owned residential estate of Southwark over the coming year.
Southwark Council is enabling Hyperoptic to increase its network across the borough at no cost to the taxpayer, with the first installation at the Osprey Estate expected to go live within six weeks and the rest of Southwark’s buildings will be connected over the coming year.
“Once again Southwark Council has shown how we can find innovative new ideas and partnerships to help deliver a better broadband service to our residents,” Chancellor Fiona Colley, Cabinet Member for Finance, Modernisation and Performance at Southwark Council said. “This new Hyperoptic will complement other projects we have undertaken around the borough and means we can get improved broadband into more of our council estates, increasing the choice for our tenants and making it easier for Hyperoptic to then extend their service to private properties nearby.
The company will install more than 40km of cable in Southwark in addition to the 22km it has already installed so far, covering 20% of premises and the implementation of the project will increase this to 80%.
The initiative aims to better connect businesses and homes.
“The role of local government in enabling the future of a full-fibre Britain cannot be understated. Wayleaves are the number one hindrance to urban rollouts. Southwark has chosen not only to help, but also to champion a digital future for its residents,” Hyperoptic CEO Dana Tobak said. “Thanks to the hard work of Southwark Council and our team, we can now substantially invest in the area and quickly rollout our future-proof infrastructure across the whole borough.”
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In 2017, consumer champion ‘Which?’ named the London Borough of Southwark as one of the 20 worst places in the UK for broadband speeds where download speed averages 10.4Mbps.
With full-fibre from Hyperoptic, homes and offices will have access to broadband speeds of 1,000Mbps, which will be achieved because fibre will be installed into building, homes or businesses. To ensure the rollout is as quick as possible, Hyperoptic will also offer digital inclusion training to staff and residents on the council’s housing estates.
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“Hyperoptic has committed to providing every council-owned TRA Hall and community centre with free gigabit capable broadband connections and as we work towards getting everyone in the borough online, it is also fantastic to hear that Hyperoptic will be offering digital inclusion training to staff and residents on our estates so everyone can gain the knowledge and confidence to make the most of the new services being offered,” said Colley.
