Decision details

The Chair welcomed Sean McGrath, External Investment and Funding Manager, to the meeting who delivered a presentation regarding the interim position of Superfast Broadband rollout in Lancashire, planning for the Superfast Extension Programme and further opportunities for domestic and business premises to access Superfast Broadband. It was explained that final detail would be provided at a future meeting following the end of "Phase One" of Superfast Broadband Rollout, and information around planning for "Phase Two".

The Committee were informed that, from an economic perspective, Superfast Broadband rollout focussed on ensuring that Lancashire's businesses and communities did not fall behind in terms of access to digital resources and services.

It was elucidated that Superfast Broadband rollout in Lancashire was a collaborative approach via a range of partners; Lancashire County Council, British Telecom (BT), Broadband Delivery United Kingdom (BDUK), along with Blackpool Council and Blackburn with Darwen Council. It was highlighted that the County Council was leading the management of the programme.

Sean McGrath explained to Members that the County Council could only invest public resources in areas where the broadband infrastructure did not exist, which were named 'white' areas. It was also noted that the County Council could not invest in areas were broadband infrastructure was installed by other providers, such as Virgin Media. Furthermore, investment was not permitted in the instance that a provider planned to install their systems over the next two to three years, which came into effect at the commencement of the programme. It was explained that a consultancy undertaken investigative work to determine the aforementioned and therefore their work allowed the County Council to identify areas that required intervention.

The Committee received that BT were delivering to 67% of premises, Superfast Lancashire delivered 21% in identified intervention areas, and the remaining 9% via other high speed broadband operators.

It was conveyed to Members that Superfast Broadband was deemed to be download speeds above 24 megabits per second (mbps). Members noted that it was planned that 97% of Lancashire's homes and businesses would have access to broadband speeds above 24mbps by March 2016, which would conclude "Phase One". Regarding "Phase Two", it was planned that 99% of Lancashire homes and businesses would have access to broadband speeds above 24mbps by the end of 2017.

Sean McGrath highlighted that businesses which had the capability to connect to Superfast Broadband as a consequence of European funding had been offered twelve hours of Business Support to communicate the full potential of Superfast Broadband for their businesses.

The methods of installation of Superfast Broadband were communicated to the Committee. It was explained that premises would receive services via Fibre to the Cabinet (FTTC) which was the cheapest method of mass delivery, and when this wasn't possible, via Fibre to the Premises (FTTP). With regard to FTTC, it was explained that issues with broadband speeds could arise when a premises was over 1.2km from the cabinet, and in these instances, often FTTP, although expensive, was the best solution to resolve such issues. Regarding "Phase Two", it was conveyed that other methods of providing Superfast Broadband would also be utilised and that more information would be disseminated to the Committee at a future meeting.

Information was relayed around the extension programme, which involved increasing capacity in Lancashire from 97% (Phase One) to 99% (Phase Two). It was conveyed that this would be partly funded by the Authority and BDUK, with BT as the delivery contractor. The extension programme sought to deliver Superfast Broadband to an additional 12,000 premises in three phases, and would be more expensive in terms of pound spent per premises as it involved more utilisation of FTTP and surveys were being undertaken in the New Year to determine the optimum location for cabinets. It was stated that more information would be provided at the follow-up meeting in early 2016.

Regarding the remaining 1% of premises that were not captured within "Phase One" and "Phase Two" it was anticipated that there would be utilisation of satellite, WiFi and the use of 4G mobile signals. It was expressed that engagement would be needed with homeowners and businesses that fell within the 1% to identify the most adequate solutions.

The Committee were informed that European Structural and Investment Funds (ESIF) would be utilised going forward to enable improved access for businesses in rural and urban settings that were eligible, along with demand stimulation via business support.

Members received information around Gainshare, which was explained to be a national agreement whereby BT set aside 'revenue' from the uptake of Superfast Broadband to be invested into the broadband infrastructure in the County, as European rules dictated that funds could not be accrued from public interventions. The initial investment arrangement was explained to come into effect when Superfast Broadband take up exceeded 20% within the County, with current levels of take-up at 18.5% as of December 2015. It was noted that BT had made a proposal for investment funds to be shared at 30% which would take longer to achieve, however could provide a larger reinvestment pot. Understanding how funds could be utilised, the amount expected and when they would become available was explained to be an area of focus going forward.

The Chair thanked Sean McGrath for delivering the presentation and invited comments from the Committee.

CC C Wakeford clarified that, in reference to the perceived drop in megabits per second (mbps) after a distance of 1.2km, this did not mean a straight line distance from a cabinet but the cable length in total.

CC C Wakeford requested that Sean McGrath supply Members with information at the next meeting information around which areas of the county expected roll out, and where it had been delivered to aid understanding. Sean McGrath agreed to provide the information at the future meeting to take place in early 2016.

CC C Wakeford noted that the target for Superfast Broadband rollout had been to achieve 97% coverage by the end of 2015, however this had been pushed back to March 2016. It was therefore requested that a rough outline be provided with regard to the current status of Superfast Broadband rollout. Sean McGrath explained that the remainder of "Phase One" was scheduled to take place in January and February 2016, and progress would be monitored via weekly updates from BT.

CC C Wakeford requested more detail around the final 1% that would not have Superfast Broadband after 2018. It was conveyed that satellite and WiFi solutions were being considered, however this had received mixed views with many preferring the option to receive FTTP. It was noted that further information would be provided at the follow-up meeting in 2016.

CC C Wakeford made reference to the Business Support Programme and queried the targets for uptake of this service, along with the current levels of uptake. Sean McGrath explained that approximately 500 businesses had gone through the programme, and the County Council, along with its partners, would endeavour to deliver more via marketing, promotion and working alongside Economic Development colleagues involved in the Local Growth Deal. It was emphasised that funding for the programme was received from ESIF who had delegated criteria for the types of businesses this could be utilised for, and therefore, there were limitations.

CC C Wakeford noted the current level of uptake was 18.5% for Superfast Broadband in Lancashire and asked if this was only BT customers, or accounted for all internet service providers (ISP's). It was expressed that the North West as a whole was in a lower quartile in terms of its take-up of Superfast Broadband, however there were some parts of Lancashire that had seen 100% take-up on some cabinets. It was highlighted that the highest level of take-up in England was in the South East.

CC C Wakeford asked what could follow Superfast Broadband rollout, for example implementation of ultra-fast broadband or LiFi. Sean McGrath explained to the Committee that ultra-fast broadband may be made available in the future and would be business orientated initially as they would be the key customers for such a product.

CC C Wakeford, regarding the final 1%, queried if the County Council knew were the premises that were problematic were located and if Parish Councils and residents had been consulted. It was conveyed that the County Council issued a series of postcodes to contractors, however the details of individual premises that were able to connect to Superfast Broadband were not known until the area had been completed.

CC C Crompton queried if anywhere in Lancashire had installed their own infrastructure, as had occurred in some areas outside of its boundaries, and in these instances, who held the responsibility for said infrastructure if a fault occurred. Sean McGrath explained that there were two methods, one was through commercial providers such as Virgin Media, who installed their own infrastructure and the responsibility would be theirs. Also, communities could contact BT directly and work with them to bring infrastructure to their areas and this would be the responsibility of Openreach. Sean McGrath expressed that he was unaware whether community intervention had occurred in Lancashire, however there had been examples of such in Cumbria.

CC G Wilkins noted that his Electoral Division was rural, with part deemed a 'white' area and part deemed to be the opposite. Therefore, CC Wilkins queried what the opposite of a 'white' area was. Sean McGrath explained that; 'white' areas had no broadband infrastructure and required public intervention, 'grey'areas had one (infrastructure-based) provider already active and 'black' areas had at least two basic broadband networks involving different operators. 'White' areas tended to be rural and 'grey' and 'black' areas tended to be more urban, although not exclusively.

CC G Wilkins queried who the County Council's contact was for Superfast Broadband. Sean McGrath suggested that queries could be sent to himself.

CC G Wilkins queried if a map could be provided at the next meeting including the 'white' areas of broadband rollout. Sean McGrath explained that at the follow-up meeting in 2016, a map would be provided to the Committee to depict where Superfast Broadband had been made available.

CC David O'Toole queried how broadband speeds could be investigated by Lancashire's businesses and premises to determine if Superfast Broadband was required. Sean McGrath explained that it depended on the location of the premises, some areas could be 24mbps and some nearer to 100mbps. The Committee were informed that this could be checked via BT Openreach's 'speed checker' on their website.

CC Richard Newman-Thompson queried what the maximum broadband speed attainable via Superfast Broadband was in Lancashire and secondly, how future-proof Superfast Broadband was with other technologies, such as ultrafast broadband, being spoken of. Sean McGrath explained that it was technically feasible for a broadband provider to offer 300mbps, however this wasn't offered by any providers in Lancashire. Regarding future proofing, it was explained that BDUK were investigating future developments and that the position of this was not known. However, it was conveyed that Sean McGrath would research this and reply to the full committee with the relevant information.

CC Alyson Barnes queried the level of Superfast Broadband take-up in localities, and the profile of businesses. Sean McGrath explained that at the beginning of the programme, businesses that tended to engage were located in Preston, Chorley, South Ribble, Lancaster, Wyre and Fylde predominately. As a consequence, the County Council expressed to BT that good geographical coverage was needed and work be undertaken to engage with the East of the County in particular. However, despite efforts, engagement remained comparatively low, as was the case for West Lancashire. Therefore, work was being undertaken to understand the reasons for the lower levels of engagement and this would be delivered at the next meeting.

CC Alyson Barnes asked if the County Council and its partners had considered communicating with the East Lancashire Chamber of Commerce to aid understanding of the issues. Sean McGrath explained that this had been considered and would also be raised at a Lancashire Enterprise Partnership (LEP) Board meeting.

CC C Henig made reference to issues with communicating when Superfast Broadband had been installed, and that under-promising to manage expectations could also lead to under-informing. It was also queried whether fibres could perish. Sean McGrath noted that communication needed to improve and presented in such a way to allow the public to easily digest the material. Regarding fibres, it was explained that issues lay with older infrastructure rather than the fibre-optic infrastructure in terms of perishability.

CC John Shedwick expressed that the map to be provided at the follow-up meeting was welcomed and asked if there were any impending difficulties in business parks and enterprise zones in particular that may be evident on the map. Regarding Enterprise Zones, work was ongoing; with regard to Blackpool Airport, discussions had commenced. It was explained that the vast majority of business parks had received Superfast Broadband capability and issues had been as a consequence of expansion of the sites where one half would have capability and vice versa. Sean McGrath explained that any issues could be communicated to himself.

CC Vivien Taylor made reference to many parts of the County suffering from flooding and whether this had impacted on any of the Superfast Broadband infrastructure, or had the potential to. Sean McGrath explained that once the infrastructure had been laid, the responsibility was with Openreach. It was elucidated that the only issues known had arisen from power outages caused by flooding, which was not an issue with the Superfast Broadband infrastructure specifically.

The Chair queried if water in Cabinets impacted on the Superfast Broadband infrastructure. Sean McGrath expressed that he would speak to colleagues regarding the mitigation and impact of flooding upon the infrastructure.

Resolved; That the Committee accept the report and be provided with an update at a further meeting in 2016.