| answer text |
<p>The department invested over £10 million in broadband rollout across South Yorkshire.
As a result of this, as well as commercial investment, 98% of premises in South Yorkshire
now have access to superfast broadband. Nearly 14% of premises can also access gigabit-capable
connectivity - up from 0% in February 2016. A further £780,000 has been made available
to bring more South Yorkshire premises in scope for a broadband upgrade.</p><p>In
Barnsley, 98% of premises in Barnsley have access to superfast broadband which is
up from 44% in November 2011. Nearly 20% of premises have access to gigabit-capable
connectivity, up from 0.4% in August 2018.</p><p>For those premises that are still
struggling with slow speeds, there are a number of options available to them. DCMS
runs a voucher scheme that can be used by rural communities across the UK to reduce
the cost of installing gigabit-capable connectivity. This provides a voucher worth
up to £3,500 for eligible small businesses and vouchers worth up to £1,500 for residents.
‘Top-up’ schemes run by Local Authorities, who provide their own funding on top of
DCMS’s, are also operating across the UK.</p><p>The government also introduced the
broadband Universal Service Obligation (USO) on 20 March 2020. The USO gives eligible
premises in the UK the right to request a decent and affordable connection. The government
has defined decent broadband as a service that can provide a download speed of 10Mbps
and an upload speed of 1Mbps.</p><p> </p>
|
|
