Somerset and Devon Broadband Demand Survey

A fast, reliable broadband connection is becoming ever more important for businesses and residents in Somerset and Devon. With the growth of the Internet and the rise in online services, not having access to a reliable fast broadband connection can put you at a serious disadvantage.

The Coalition Government sees investment in fast, reliable broadband, or 'Superfast' Broadband, as vital to economic growth and has therefore made available a £530m fund to support investments in improvements to broadband infrastructure.

The fund will be used to improve services in locations that will not be served by the market acting alone - a significant proportion of Somerset and Devon falls within this category, mainly its rural areas.

Somerset County Council and Devon County Council intend to make a substantial joint bid into this fund, our aims are to:

• Ensure access to significantly faster broadband for every business and community by 2015, with the vast majority having access to superfast broadband;
• Deliver this at a fair price and through an open network which attracts a wide variety of retail service providers, where rural communities benefit at the same time as urban areas;
• Work with businesses, communities and across the public and voluntary sectors to realise the potential benefits - unlocking economic growth to create more and better jobs, and transforming access to services for rural areas.

To find out more about the bid, visit: http://www.connectingdevonandsomerset.co.uk/

To help us achieve these aims, having a greater insight to the issues you face and your needs is critical. Please take a few minutes to complete our survey.

This consultation has now closed.