Staffordshire Briefs: Superfast Staffordshire; Staffordshire County Council; Netmania

Staffordshire reveals superfast broadband areas

STAFFORDSHIRE County Council has revealed the first communities to benefit from the £27.87m investment in superfast fibre optic broadband.

Superfast Staffordshire, the broadband partnership comprising the county council, BT and the Government’s broadband deliver, BDUK, said work was now under way to connect around 4,000 properties in Ash Bank, Clifton Campville, Kings Bromley, Marchington, Yarnfield and Yoxall. This is in addition to premises in Rugeley and Colton, which were announced last autumn.

Fibre broadband will also be extended in parts of Burntwood, Heath Hayes, and Penkridge.
          
The Superfast Staffordshire partnership aims to provide the high speed service to more than 88,000 homes and businesses, mainly in rural areas.

The programme will see the laying of more than one million metres of fibre optic cable and around 500 new street-side cabinets installed to connect people to the new network across the county.  This partnership rollout is in addition to BT’s commercial rollout which will enable more than 370,000 premises in the county to access faster fibre broadband by the end of spring 2014.
 
Staffordshire County Council’s cabinet member for economy and infrastructure Mark Winnington said:  “Our key priority is to bring prosperity and jobs to Staffordshire and superfast broadband is a part of our strategy on achieving this.”

 

Staffordshire to continue providing financial aid to SMEs in need of growth 

STAFFORDSHIRE County Council is to continue developing its relationship with SMEs looking to secure growth capital.

The authority said it had been encouraged by the response of companies towards its Business Loan Fund and it would continue to seek out firms which could benefit from the financing.

Around 100 small businesses across Staffordshire have benefited from the fund since it was set up in 2009.

Staffordshire County Council and BCRS Business Loans run the fund. It is available exclusively for Staffordshire-based businesses having difficulty in raising the funds they need from mainstream lenders. 

The scheme is part financed by the European Regional Development Fund and offers loans from £10,000 to £50,000.

 

Loan fund clocks up the century with help to Netmania 

A COMPANY which has developed a product for internet service providers at its Staffordshire base has become the 100th recipient of one of the county council’s business loans.

Lichfield-based ICT solutions firm Netmania helped the Staffordshire Business Loan Fund clock up its century. The fund is run by Staffordshire County Council in partnership with BCRS.

Netmania’s initial loan received in 2010 literally saved the business and it has now received another loan in order to support its continued growth and overseas expansion.

The twin loans have enabled the company to transform from an ICT support business into developing a product which enables management of internet connection across multiple devices.

Netmania’s company director Nick Wilcox said: “Staffordshire County Council and BCRS saved Netmania.  Without them there would be 30 people without jobs and that includes me. The loan fund is perfect for businesses like mine.”

Over the past four years, the fund has invested more than £2.8m, with £1.2m still available to support small businesses. This investment has helped to create and safeguard over 900 jobs.” 

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