NextGen 10 (4): BDUK trials
26 November 2010
Dr Robert Sullivan, HEAD of Broadband Delivery UK (BDUK), spoke about the four rural trials for the delivery of next generation broadband and, in a panel session, there were representatives from each of the four trial areas.
There were 56 applications for the trials and originally it was intended to select three areas, but in the event four were chosen. Each area will be allocated around £5-10 million. The first pilot procurement will start early next year.
The four trial areas are as follows:
- The Highlands and Islands - representative: Andrea Rutherford of Highlands & Islands Enterprise
- Parts of Cumbria - representative: Alan Cook of Cumbria County Council
- North Yorkshire - representative: David Cullen of NYnet
- The Golden Valley in Herefordshire - representative: Phil Wells of Advantage West Midlands
The surprise choice was Herefordshire and it was claimed that so far all the project has is "a blank sheet of paper" which prompted one failed bidder to wonder how it had won.
Robert Sullivan explained that these four trials only represented "the first wave" and that there will be further waves, but he could give no timescales for such further projects.