Northumberland’s rural communities and businesses now enjoy significantly enhanced connectivity, bandwidth and resilience that has changed lives and boosted local economies.
This is all thanks to a successful partnership between both companies. Commsworld undertook a complete overhaul of backhaul capacity to remote communities, with enhanced speeds the result of linking connections to Commsworld’s nationwide ultra-fast Optical Core Network.
In turn Alncom strengthened its position as a rural broadband leader by delivering gigabit-capable broadband to people even in the most challenging of remote areas directly to their premises.
One rural business that has benefited from this transformation is Ingram Valley Safari.
Just nine miles from the border with Scotland, the Alnwick business is run by Ross and Rebecca.
Visitors can access Ingram Valley Farm, a traditional hill farm in Northumberland National Park, from where they can explore the farm’s unique archaeology including the Scheduled Ancient Monument which includes prehistoric settlements, ancient agricultural terrace systems and funerary remains.
It's the present day need of gigabit-capable broadband which has changed business significantly for the better.
Ross said: “We run a heard of 125 cows, 800 ewes and 100 red deer. We had half a megabit and it would drop out a fair bit, so we effectively had no broadband previously. Now the arrival of gigabit-capable broadband has allowed us to move with the times and the rest of the country, and means our business is so much faster and more efficient.
Through the UK Government’s Project Gigabit, Alncom were able to provide a gigabit connection straight to Ingram Farm, and connecting up to Commsworld’s Optical Core Network.
Ross continued: “It now means that for every calf that’s born on the farm, we put two ear tags in their ear, record the numbers and then send those over broadband to the government. Before we had gigabit we might have had to register them over the phone, which is not necessarily the easiest or quickest way to register the cattle. It’s so easily done now thanks to the gigabit connection.”
Rebecca added: “As well as our agricultural business, we also have a safari. That business is run entirely through our gigabit internet. With the help of the gigabit the farm has grown from strength to strength and that’s only going to continue to grow.
“Also, the courses that I’m currently doing rely heavily on the internet connection, I use the gigabit to do all of my coursework. Travelling to and from a college is just not feasible, I would spend more time travelling than I would in the college.
“Everyone in the valley uses it now. There are multiple small businesses that run off of it, and other businesses that appeared because of it as well.”
Ross continued: “Gigabit has enabled our business to future-proof. Technology is changing all the time, and I feel that there’s certain technologies which could be available in the future which would help us with our cattle, sheep, deer and other aspects of our business. Having that gigabit will give us the grounding to be able to move ahead with these technologies when they appear.”
