People living in Acton Turville have spent the autumn writing to South Gloucestershire Council, trying to get the area faster broadband. South Gloucestershire is co-ordinating the local roll-out of Broadband Delivery UK (BDUK) money, and the village is not yet certain to be included.

Councillor Sue Hope (Lib Dem-Cotswold Edge) said: “There’s a massive demand for Superfast broadband in Acton Turville. The people who live there have all sorts of problems – students who can’t take advantage of study opportunities online, businesses that can’t take orders because someone else is trying to watch catch-up TV, exam papers that take forever to download. All sorts of normal, everyday things, that people in urban areas can do without thinking, are a daily struggle.

“I’ve been given petitions, and people have written in their droves to the Tories in charge, asking them to make sure Acton Turville is included. So far, all we’ve been told is – it might be.

“That’s just not good enough. Officers at South Gloucestershire have been vacillating for months. We’ve finally got confirmation that they’re allowed to spend the money – Acton Turville is in ‘the intervention area’ – but we don’t know yet if they’re going to. All the officers will say is that not all areas will get the improved broadband service. I need residents to take action now – if you haven’t yet written to South Gloucestershire Council, please do so. We have to keep up the pressure, and make the Tories in charge understand, high speed broadband is vital for the local economy, and for education. The government have committed to making it available for all – so it’s time the local council lived up to their end.”

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