Landowners and rural organisations to meet and discuss how to secure better broadband

Having access to broadband has never been more important for rural communities
Having access to broadband has never been more important for rural communities

Landowners, industry experts and policy makers are set to discuss how rural communities and businesses can secure better broadband and mobile connections.

CLA seminar in Cambridgeshire on Wednesday (8 June) will focus on the connectivity needs of the future, as well as explore the technologies and practical actions needed to meet these requirements.

The findings will then be part of a report that will be unveiled at the CLA’s Rural Business Conference.

The Conference, to be held in Westminster on 6 December, will bring rural businesses and key influencers together to develop solutions to the issues that matter for rural businesses.

Cambridgeshire-based CLA Deputy President Tim Breitmeyer of the Bartlow Estate said: "This important event will seek to answer the question of we can fund and deliver the genuinely superfast connections that rural businesses need.

"Poor connections are the single biggest barrier to them achieving their potential.

"In rural areas, 1.5 million, or nearly 50 percent, of rural premises are connected by lines that are unable to receive speeds higher than 10Mbps and one in five rural premises are unable to receive speeds higher than 5Mbps.

"And only 31 percent of people in rural areas can expect to get ‘all networks’ mobile coverage indoors compared to 91 percent in urban areas.

"This seminar will bring landowners, industry experts and policy makers together to start discussing how we can bridge the digital divide between urban and rural areas, and take a positive step towards getting a shared solution that is vital to the future of rural business.”

The CLA’s Rural Business Conference will see the launch of the organisation’s Rural Business 2030 report which will include:

• New economic data based on CLA primary research that provides new insight into the current state and future prospects of the rural economy; and

• Policy recommendations that are vital to unlocking investment vital to the future of rural business.

The event and report will be the culmination of a programme of events that began in April. These will include:

• two different expert working groups at the start and end of the policy discussion process;

• three seminars looking in detail at specific challenges and developing policy ideas; and

• a number of events or activities linked to the Rural Business 2030 programme taking place at county and regional shows around the country.