LAST year the Hedon Town Mayor John Dennis undertook talks with KC about bringing their flagship superfast broadband product Lightstream to Hedon. After twelve months of what seemed productive talks, KC announced the roll-out of their Lightstream service – but Hedon wasn’t included!
Today marks just one week until the General and East Riding of Yorkshire Council ELECTIONS. This would seem an opportune time to kickstart that campaign once again and seek political, business and community support for a campaign to convince KC that Hedon is the perfect place for them to invest with a real demand for their product existing. Several of the candidates have expressed enthusiastic support for this campaign which will begin online with the Pledge Form below.
Over the next month we hope to build up the number of pledges substantially.
THE Campaign to bring superfast broadband to Hedon continues! The ability to get online quickly is becoming crucial to everyday life – broadband increases our access to banking, shopping, entertainment, learning resources and other services.
With superfast broadband, you can download large files very quickly which is not only convenient but is becoming increasingly a necessity to take advantage of many opportunities on offer from modern companies and service providers.
Without superfast broadband in Hedon, the town is at a disadvantage!
Below is a Pledge Form which will give you the opportunity to say which superfast service is appropriate for your use.
This Pledge form relaunches the campaign to bring superfast broadband to Hedon.
As you sign up to the Pledge Form, you will indicate which is your preferred service. From the date you sign up, we will carry out a monthly totalling up of the amounts people would have paid which represents the lost payments/custom to KC.
1. Firstly check out the KC Lightstream products on offer at the KC website at http://www.kc.co.uk/products/broadband/ (opens in a new window). And while we haven’t included these, local businesses should have a look at KC’s www.superfasthull.co.uk website.
2. After making your choice enter your details and preference here. This doesn’t commit you to anything but will help to prove the demand for superfast broadband in Hedon.
To give a public display of the numbers signing up, then please complete the survey too. Finally, do leave comments below this article and tell us about how you would use broadband and why KC should commit and invest in Hedon.
Several years after Hedon residents were crying out for fibre, in 2024 they are now protesting at the likes of MS3 bringing faster/cheaper fibre options into the area. Funny how people turn into such selfish nimbys over a few wooden poles.
I’m pleased to say that Hedon residents and businesses were keen to bring superfast broadband into the area. And by 2020 the area had some of the best available in the country. Sadly, MS3 haven’t added to that infrastructure, but simply jumped on a government bandwagon in a cynical attempt to make lots of money, and quickly. Bringing, not just “a few wooden poles”, but nearly 600 into the town. Telegraph poles, which are far more prone to disruption from weather, accidents and vandalism than underground infrastructure. You’ve read how in 2015 residents were willing to engage with KC – now KCOM – over this issue. Just imagine if MS3, rather than cynically forcing through the installation of its telegraph poles and experiencing the outrage of residents, had instead offered to engage with communities in Hedon on their proposed network, then the outcome may have been different. Instead, MS3 and the sad ISPs that choose to use their poles are boycotted in the town for at least the next 10 years. Not a good start for them I would say!
The KCOM vans have been around for the past few weeks, laying cables and replacing ducts, so it comes as no suprise that Hedon & Preston are the next locations on KCOM’s rollout plan for superfast fibre broadband. 5000 homes will gain access to Lightstream before the year is out with around 600 of these able to order Lightstream from the start of August and the remainder between September and December.
The roll out moves West to East across the town from August, Inmans around September and Leaf Sail should go live around October.
The connection scheme ended this week. Did many businesses in Hedon apply?
I’ve just started working in the KC Business Team.
The government’s Superfast Cities scheme covers connection costs upto a value of £3000. This means any business in Hedon can apply, if you’re a shop in the Market Place, a plumber on Inmans, a window cleaner on Westlands or a builder on Leaf Sail Farm, any sole traders or limited companies in business or residential properties can apply.
Certain terms and conditions apply, if you want more info or to see if you can apply, feel free to email me aly.smith@kcom.com
The process has just been made easier where you don’t need to send paperwork off to Hull City Council. The pot isn’t limitless and demand is very high so get in touch so you don’t miss out.
Excellent news that the process just got simpler Aly !
Is the grant available to other services in the town like schools, doctors, dentists, the Town Hall, as well as small businesses ? Presumably the more local businesses sign up, the greater priority KC will give to actually rolling out Lighstream to all homes in Hedon, which is what we all want to see ?
You can check your eligibility for the connection voucher by using the following links https://www.connectionvouchers.co.uk/ and https://www.connectionvouchers.co.uk/eligibility-checker/
It’s not a limitless pot, so don’t hang around if it’s something you’re thinking about.
By way of a reminder please read the following paragraphs from my previous comment
—– “It is possible for local businesses to apply for Lightstream now, although some technical issues need to be considered, such as distance from exchange etc, and of course there would be an installation cost.
However, the good news is there’s a special deal available right now that means local businesses with a turnover of less than £40miilion and less than 250 employees ( that’s most of us I reckon!) can now get help with the installation costs, and if they qualify, all they will pay is the VAT. The capital cost being picked up by ( you may not believe this ) the Hull City Council !!!!
Bearing in mind the cost to my firm at £1,000, all I would pay would be £200”. —–
Well since then I have filled out the forms – (the lady at KC was very helpful with the technical stuff, and she will ‘pre-populate’ the forms for you) – have received the Hull City Council Vouchers, and am now on the list for installation of High Speed Broadband in the next few weeks.
And the even better news is that they are providing the funding not only for my office, but also my home too, where much of my work gets done these days..
So – if you have a business, but work from home the offer applies to you too. What can you lose by applying.
Contact me if you need help with making the right contacts. 897129.
John P. Dennis
Cllr E.R.Y.C.
Ward Member for S.W.Holderness
Based on 17 people signing up (those who submitted their details via the online form above) then this month KC would have collected at least £816.83 from Lightstream customers in the town. Over the year that would total £9,801.96 – this of course being lost trade to KC seeing as Lightstream is not currently available.
It’s the residents that need it, it’s the houses full of kids that watch catch up TV, play on X Boxes and watch YouTube. Most of Hedon is crying out for faster internet.
Ray and I have already spoken about this and will be working together to get our town top of KC’s list for next rollout. Whilst Ray’s initiative can reach all the subscribers to the Blog, I want to get our schools, GPs, shops and local businesses and community groups to sign up, (including the Town Council !). A wide range of support from households and organisations in the town should secure this at last !
Its a pity that the Town Council didn’t wake up to this before I raised it in last year’s council byelection, as we have missed out on two rounds of Lightstream rollout since then. And it was then that I suggested the council should lead a broad campaign for the town to be given priority. 15 months on its Ray who has taken the lead and I will be supporting him (whether I am successfuly elected or not later this week).
The start of this campaign has prompted a positive response from KC Business who have said via Twitter: “KC has been discussing Superfast with Hedon Council for a while and we want customer demand to drive the roll out. Hedon has a head start on this and is well placed as we begin planning for the next phase from mid 2016.”
Well done Ray, a great initiative, and hopefully your blog Pledge Form will produce strong support and help in my campaign, which by the way I have not given up on.
If re-elected (not taking anything for granted) I intend to keep the pressure on those in KC who make these decisions.
I did mention last year that it is possible for local businesses to apply for Lightstream now, although some technical issues need to be considered, such as distance from exchange etc, and of course there would be an installation cost.
However, the good news is there’s a special deal available right now that means local businesses with a turnover of less than £40miilion and less than 250 employees ( that’s most of us I reckon!) can now get help with the installation costs, and if they qualify, all they will pay is the VAT. The capital cost being picked up by ( you may not believe this ) the Hull City Council !!!!
Bearing in mind the cost to my firm at £1,000, all I would pay would be £200.
Worth investigating. If anyone’s interested contact me on 897129
John Dennis
668th Mayor of Hedon
The subsidy comes from the Dept of Media, Culture and Sport via Hull City Council. east Riding offer the same subsidy but they got into bed with BT!!!! (you couldn’t make it up, considering BT have no interest in providing service in our area).
This is a fantastic initiative, Leaf Sail suffers from terrible speeds,a KC engineer told me the network on the estate is only geared for talk calls rather than information, it’s not unusual to get less than 5megs. We need Lightstream sooner than 2016.
So far, no-one has contacted me on this. If you run a business in Hedon, and even if you work from home you could qualify.
Really it’s a great deal – all you’ll pay is the VAT !
John Dennis 668th Mayor of Hedon