December News

WEA is first in Cambridge to get super-speed internet

On Wednesday 1st December, the WEA became the first in Cambridge to get a new super-speed broadband service, introduced by BT. Alison Ritchie, BT’s Chief Broadband Officer, handed-over the high-speed internet connection to Carolyn Daines, Eastern Regional Secretary, at their office in Botolph Lane.

BT’s Business Broadband Advanced service can send data up to eight times faster than standard broadband services, making it ideally suited to organisations such as the WEA that need to generate and distribute large volumes of information. Furthermore, it has the added advantage of sending information as quickly as it receives it.

WEA IT Operations Manager, Russell Flemmer explains “as the UK’s largest voluntary provider of adult education, BT Business Broadband Advanced will make a huge difference to the way we work. We’ll be getting a cost-effective, high-speed connection to our headquarters in London, and our eight other regional offices across the UK.” It is estimated that the BT Business Broadband Advanced network has the potential to bring savings of £130,000 in the first year alone, once all 9 regional offices are connected to the network.”

In addition, BT’s Alison Ritchie, believes that Business Broadband Advanced is one step further towards BT’s commitment to build “Broadband Britain”, a digital networked economy in which “everyone, including individuals, businesses and organisations in the public, private and voluntary sectors will have access to unlimited information in an instant, and are able to share their expertise around the globe and within their own communities".

BT’s Alison Ritchie (left) and WEA Eastern Region Secretary, Carolyn Daines demonstrating the new high speed internet connection in the WEA Cambridge Office

It is good to see the WEA leading the way in making use of this new internet technology. BT Business Broadband Advanced will provide the WEA with a modern network, giving staff all over the country improved access to business applications, and ultimately helping the association deliver better services to all its students.

For more information about this story please contact Maria Flemmer on 020 7375 3105, or email: mflemmer@wea.org.uk