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Supporting Yorkshire Water's bid for funding to pilot a
"fibre in water" project
Helping people stay connected and boosting our local
economy
Fast and reliable digital connectivity helps to deliver economic,
social and well-being benefits.
It enables home working, home learning and helps keep friends and
families in touch with one another.
But for far too long parts of my constituency have suffered
from poor broadband - so I'm pleased to be supporting Yorkshire
Water's bid for funding to pilot a "fibre in water" project which
will see advanced broadband and mobile services delivered via the
cleanwater infrastructure.
Rural areas can be hard to reach but under the fibre in
water proposals I'm supporting, existing Yorkshire Water pipes
would be used to extend the fibre broadband network from Barnsley
out to Penistone via Dodworth. This network would deliver faster
internet access and better connectivity for communities currently
affected by slow speeds and in areas where it would not normally
be commercially viable to build new broadband infrastructure.
Penistone and its surrounding villages have been identified as an
area that will need Government funding to help upgrade their
broadband infrastructure. Through this brilliant project we can
help to deliver the upgrades local people and businesses need to
help them thrive. And by bringing the fibre in water project
through Dodworth Business Park the project makes the site more
attractive for businesses, giving them more options for broadband
supply. Coupled with its proximity to the major road network,
this type of infrastructure upgrade has the potential to make the
park a key contributor to our local economy.
The Yorkshire Water proposal also offers benefits to some of our
most rural areas using ‘private’ 5G technology to deliver home
broadband (called Fixed Wireless Broadband) to selected very
remote premises to the west of Penistone. Many of these
properties are currently relying on outdated and inferior
connections that are unable to meet the needs of modern families
and businesses.
This bid, to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and
Sport's £5million innovation competition for fibre in water
development, is part of the Government's wider Gigabit Britain
vision, which will see £1.2billion invested in connecting ‘hard
to reach’ parts of the country.
I have written to the Minister, , in support of the bid, and
hope to see our area chosen to pilot this fantastic and
innovative project.
Download letter to Chris
Philp
