rural broadband – Pencaitland and District Community Council

Provisional broadband stats reported in local press

The local media recently picked up on some of the preliminary statistics coming out of the Broadband Working Group’s efforts to find out how people feel about current local provision of broadband service.

Click this image to read the article from East Lothian News — **Click the image above to read the article from East Lothian News**

The Broadband Working Group has been exploring practical solutions for bringing high-speed wireless broadband service to this part of East Lothian, in conjunction with the existing development of a working system by Lothian Broadband — a co-operative company set up to introduce a wireless 20Mbps service to a large geographical area roughly south of Haddington.

Extending this service to Pencaitland would deliver a similar speed of service, eventually with the potential to rise to 50Mbps, whether uploading or downloading from the internet.

If you haven’t had a chance to take the short survey please do so now. Your views will help inform any final decision your Community Council takes on an independent solution to rural broadband provision.

Pencaitland Community Council

Rural villages win super-fast broadband funding

Neighbouring East Linton and Garvald & Morham Community Council have landed funding which will allow them to develop super-fast, next-generation broadband for their communities — residents who previously had very slow or no service at all.

Leader funding secured for super-fast broadband in parts of rural East Lothian The initial plan is to roll out a 20Mbps service to the communities and businesses of East Linton, Garvald, Morham, Gifford and most of the areas in between. That’s a full 12Mbps faster than the very best connections most people in rural East Lothian can ever hope to get at the moment.

The story began in 2004 when locals in Garvald were told by BT that their exchange would not be broadband enabled. Similarly the Morham area were told their telephone lines would not be upgraded to receive broadband from the Haddington exchange. That prompted residents and businesses within the Garvald & Morham community to seek funding from Leader Plus and East Lothian Council to set up a community wireless broadband service. The community won the funding, operating a 2Mbps service since June 2005.