Mid Sussex is already one of the most economically prosperous and naturally beautiful parts of the UK. Digital Mid Sussex is an innovative initiative – part of our wider Opportunity Mid Sussex programme – to ensure it also becomes one of the most digitally advanced.
Mid Sussex District Council and its partners are leading the programme, working as part of a group called Cooperative Network Infrastructure (CNI).
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As shown by the drawing, fibre optic cables have been laid in underground ducting across the district as the foundation to bring ‘full-fibre’ services to our community.
Innovatively, this infrastructure hasn’t been installed by an Internet company but by Mid Sussex District Council. And we’re providing open access to the infrastructure so any Internet companies can use it.
This will make it easy and cost-effective for them to deliver services across our area, stimulating competition and leading to a wide choice of excellent value full-fibre digital options.
We have a 'Dig Once' policy, which means, wherever possible, we will install new fibre when we need to dig up the road for other reasons.
Most services advertised as ‘fibre broadband’ are only partially based on fibre: data travel at high speed over long-distance fibre optic cables but then slow down over old copper telephone wires to reach your home or office.
‘Full fibre’ – sometimes called ‘Fibre to the Premises’ or ‘FTTP’ – is radically different because data are delivered via fibre optic cables 100% of the way.
This programme facilitates:
dramatically faster Internet speeds: the full-fibre infrastructure we’ve installed enables services that can operate at one gigabit per second (1 Gbps) or greater – and will be capable of handling vastly higher speeds in the future. To put this in perspective, a 1 Gbps service means you can download a full high-definition film in seconds
far greater reliability
the transmission of much higher volumes of data
‘symmetrical’ download and upload speeds, providing a better Internet experience
Timetable
We began laying the main fibre optic cables in underground ducting in autumn 2020.
We’ve completed a fibre loop around Burgess Hill, a fibre ‘spine’ between Crawley and Brighton via Horsham and Haywards Heath, plus some branches from the spine.
If you run a business or a public body, you may be able get connected now.
For residents, the date Internet service providers will be able to offer you full-fibre services will depend on the level of demand indicated in your area. So do register your interest – and encourage your neighbours to do the same.
If you’re an Internet provider who’s interested in being part of the Digital Mid Sussex programme to deliver services to our community, please get in touch with Cooperative Network Infrastructure here.
