Westerleigh currently has its internet provided over copper wires that have been continually degrading over the years. At its present rate, we are expecting
the internet speeds to drop to a point where it becomes almost unusable over the next 5 to 10 years. Some areas are already experiencing regular drop-outs and very
slow speeds. With the way everything is moving online, from banking, voting, support services, and much more, and how our lives has been changing by the new
technologies for communicating with family and friends, our internet has become more and more vital at our homes. It is now so important for the internet connections
to be as good as they can be. Going full fibre will make the infrastructure of the village future-proof, but this comes at a cost. £133,369 to be exact.
This is an amount of money that we can not afford, however, there is a government voucher scheme that can cover the entire cost of the upgrade, but this will
end at the end of March 2021. We have to act now if we are to have good working internet for the foreseeable future.
We have had a lot of questions and comments about this already, that Sky is pretending that you already have fibre internet when you don't. Some other providers have been doing
this too, but Sky seems to be the most prevalent in passing on misleading information to consumers. Except for a few houses at the top of Shorthill, no one has fibre internet
right now. The marketing arms of these internet providers have been running out of descriptions for the latest internet connectivity formats for a while, and whilst
there is "Broadband", "Fast Broadband", "Super Fast Fibre Broadband", "Ultra Fast Fibre Broadband" and "Full Fibre Broadband", all these terms are massively misleading.
There are only a few types of actual broadband connection. "Dial up", "ADSL", "VDSL or FTTC", "Full Fibre or FTTP" as well as a few special ones like "Satellite, 3G, 4G or 5G". In Westerleigh
we only have up to FTTC, that is Fibre to the cabinet. We don't have fibre optic cables running to our houses yet, so providers calling your internet "Super Fast Fibre Broadband"
and telling you it is the fastest you can get is completely false and totally misleading. When talking to any internet provider ask specifically for FTTP (Fibre to the premise)
or Full Fibre to the home. They will then tell you that you can't get that yet, which is true, and this is what we are going to change in the village with this project using
a government grant!
A new set of fibre cables are run from Chipping Sodbury to the village, and then new fibre lines are taken from the road to our houses. Once this is complete,
you can achieve speed differences of between 12 to 100+ times more than you currently have. Your speed will be limited by the internet plan you choose, but
you can get as much as 1000Mbps and for comparison, our current village average gets 25-30Mbps and falling.
These speeds mean that loading websites and films online with services like YouTube, Netflix, NowTV, Disney+ and Amazon Prime are almost instantaneous, and no more
pauses and spinning circles in the middle of watching your favourite videos whilst it tries to load. Video calls are also less prone to glitching and can be a
lot higher quality too.
Yes. Full Fibre is an extremely attractive service for house buyers. So much so, it's been proven that a Full Fibre connection can increase house prices
by as much as 5-10%! After all, the internet connection has become as important to people as having good electricity and water supplies when looking at new homes.
The Government recognize that Gigabit-capable, or Ultrafast broadband connections offer the fastest and most reliable speeds available. The Gigabit Broadband
Voucher scheme has been designed to support rural communities who are eligible for funding, team up with a network provider and bring that technology to their
doorstep. We are one of the Government’s registered network build providers. More information can be found on the Department of Culture, Media and Sport website
https://gigabitvoucher.culture.gov.uk/
The main condition is that once the network is in place, you sign up with a communications provider of your choice and start enjoying the benefits of
Ultrafast Full Fibre broadband.
The best way to check your current internet speed is to go to
fast.com. This will test how much speed your computer
has right now. It's best to check this on a device that doesn't use WiFi or on a WiFi device as close to your router as possible. Your WiFi connection can affect
the results under lots of different factors.
No, you are not tied to BT when you pledge your voucher. Openreach will build an open network, meaning that you can order from a service provider of your choice,
assuming they sell in your area.
Costs will vary depending on the package and the service provider. There are many price
comparison sites available to review. If you are already under contract with a service provider, speak to them. They may be able to move your contract over to a
Full Fibre product. There may be a price adjustment.
You can keep your existing telephone number as your phone service will continue to be delivered via the
traditional copper network for now. Because you will be on Full Fibre, you will have the speed and generally
more reliable internet connection to use VoIP (Voice Over IP) which allows you to have a land line number over
an internet connection. Providers like sipgate.co.uk can provide these services for free! You can however speak
to your provider about the alternative options and benefits an Ultrafast Full Fibre service can give you.
No. The voucher can only be towards the cost of the infrastructure build only. You will have to continue to pay for your
broadband package.