Need advice? Call our experts free on
0800 090 1342
BBN director explains broadband benefits
Schoolchildren, businesses and families are just some of the groups that can benefit from faster broadband, Karen O'Kane of BBN has said.
Speaking to the Eastern Daily Press, Ms O'Kane said the technology can help businesses, schoolchildren, students in further education, families and others.
"If you have a business you need it because it gives you reach to all sorts of customers you would not normally have access to," she explained.
Much of the school curriculum is now delivered online and many educational resources are also available via the internet, Ms O'Kane pointed out. While Norfolk County Council (NCC) has already managed to extend reasonable broadband to local schools, she warned that pupils living in rural communities are unlikely to be able to access these services from home.
"They not only struggle with learning but also accessing social media," the BBN chief commented.
She added: "A lot of older people have children and grandchildren in other parts of the world and access to things like Skype makes a world of difference to these people."
Her comments come after the launch of a survey as part of the county's Say Yes to Better Broadband in Norfolk campaign, which is being jointly run by the newspaper and NCC. The questionnaire is being used to assess levels of demand for super-fast broadband across the county.
More than 7,800 people have already responded, boosting the project's chances of succeeding in delivering download speeds of 30Mbps to as much of Norfolk as possible by 2015, while minimum capabilities of 2Mbps will be rolled out to remaining properties.
Some £15 million of government support for the initiative has been secured, backed by match funding from the county council. This will be used to improve the broadband services available to the estimated 50,000 homes and businesses in Norfolk that currently receive speeds of less than 2Mbps.