14,000 more Suffolk homes and businesses get faster broadband

Six more communities now benefiting from roll-out programme; 

Suffolk County Council welcomes new development

BT announced today that faster broadband is now available to a further 14,000 homes and businesses in Suffolk.
Southwold and Lavenham are among the latest six communities in Suffolk to benefit from upgrades as part of the roll-out of BT’s next generation broadband service delivered over copper lines. A full list can be found at the end of this release.
The BT investment will make available download speeds of up to 20 megabits per second (Mbps) – more than double the fastest speed previously available from BT.
The faster broadband is already available to 83 per cent of East of England premises and, by next Spring this figure will have reached more than 85 per cent. The new service is available on an open, wholesale basis to all companies providing broadband*.
Councillor Mark Bee, Suffolk County Council's leader, said:“This is exciting news from BT and shows that Suffolk's future broadband network is beginning to take shape.
"This development means that more businesses and households in Suffolk will be able to access faster broadband - but it's only the tip of the iceberg.
"In the next three years, the Better Broadband for Suffolk programme is going to make broadband something that anyone in Suffolk can access. The legacy of the programme is going to be a broadband network fit for the twenty first century."
“More than ever, high speed communications are crucial in the fast-moving and changing world that we work and live in and I’m looking forward to the benefits this faster broadband will bring to our region.”
Dave Hughes, BT’s Regional director for the East of England said: “Faster broadband will deliver important benefits for people across Suffolk, whether they are running a business, working or studying from home, doing the weekly shop online, downloading films and TV programmes or keeping in touch with friends and family around the world. It can all be done better using faster broadband.
“That’s why BT is determined to bring faster speeds to as many homes and businesses as possible, and we are keen to work with the public sector to find solutions for even the most challenging locations.”
This investment in the copper network is in addition to BT’s £2.5 billion roll-out of fibre-based broadband, which will bring even faster speeds to around two-thirds of UK premises by the end of 2014.

Locations included in today’s announcement.
CLARE
STANTON
HALESWORTH
LAVENHAM
SOUTHWOLD
LAKENHEATH
Note to Editors
*Once an exchange area has been upgraded for next generation broadband, some service providers automatically upgrade their customers to the enhanced broadband service. People should contact their chosen service provider for more information about the products and services they offer.