Residents, businesses and community groups are being urged to show their support for the roll-out of high-speed broadband across County Durham. Durham County Council has already been promised almost £7m by the Government to take broadband to everyone in the county and superfast provision to as many homes and businesses as possible.
However, as part of the conditions of securing the money for its Digital Durham programme, the council must prove that there is a demand for the service.
The authority is, therefore, asking people to take part in a short survey and needs as many people as possible to take part.
Don McLure, Durham County Council’s corporate director for resources, said: “Around 60 per cent of County Durham will not have access to superfast broadband if the council does not step in.
“Private companies are not inclined to invest in these areas because of the length of time it would take them to make a financial return.
“The Government grant, along with match funding we have managed to set aside, will enable us to target those areas.
“The responses we receive to the survey will help us understand the demand for superfast broadband and assist us in formulating our plans for the future.”
The survey can be accessed online by searching for Digital Durham on the council’s website, www.durham.gov.uk
Anyone who does not have access to the internet can contact the Digital Durham team on 03000 26 11 60 or by emailing digital.durham@durham.gov.uk
The deadline for responses is Saturday, 30 June