Broadband in Warcop

As was recently mentioned in the Parish Council meeting, there are plans afoot to improve the broadband connections into rural Parishes such as Warcop. Recently, several people in Warcop, Bleatarn and Sandford, who have previously expressed an interest in broadband (e.g. at the Great Asby Meeting last year and at the Rheged Conference last September) have received this email from Libby Bateman, Upper Eden Community Project Officer.....

As the broadband campaign is hotting up across Cumbria, we are getting down to the local level plans and ideas for the 'first mile' networks. But I am not too sure what the plans are for Warcop.

Other communities are getting themselves organised for their first mile networks and we could do with getting a Warcop Broadband meeting together if possible to investigate solutions and demand.

Would it be possible to arrange a parish meeting on the subject?

There is now a new group called East Cumbria Community Broadband Forum (ECCBF) which includes representatives of many of the villages from Eden. Broadband Delivery UK are fully engaged in all that is happening within Cumbria at present, and for everyone interested in broadband, the broadbandcumbria site is the local source of information from all Parishes in Cumbria.

Warcop, Bleatarn and Sandford have several choices for solutions to the broadband problem many face in areas such as this. The existing wireless network can serve a far wider area if the village chose, but we still need to resolve the problems of backhaul into the village. Work is ongoing on this issue but many rural areas suffer similar problems to those faced here.

As soon as a date is received from BIS for the next ECCBF meeting, we will post it here so that Warcop Parish can be represented, and if anyone is interested in joining the Warcop Broadband Group, please contact John Heron, Chairman of the Parish Council, David Shaw at Cote House, or Libby Bateman UECP c/o the Community Centre in Kirkby Stephen.