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Vacancy for a Parish Councillor

Cocking Village Broadband

You may be aware that half of the village have superfast broadband but there are just over 80 properties north of Bell Lane that do not and are barely functioning on slow upload and download speeds!

Three villagers have got together to sort out this issue and have met with Openreach, and WSCC with full support by the Parish Council to discuss the way forward. As a result we are pleased to inform you that Gigabit Capable is coming to the rest of Cocking and the surrounding area!

Gigabit capable broadband is the fastest and most reliable broadband available. It can achieve download speeds of 1000 megabits per second (Mbps) so it’s a huge leap forward and will future proof the properties that are connected.

If you have not registered or pledged your voucher or want to learn more please read on….

Update 4th August 2020

If you signed up for the superfast broadband you should have received an email sent on the 12th July with a letter attached about another step forward to signing up. (Some may have gone in to spam files).

It said Openreach had created us a website and you needed to put your details in here www.openreach.com/connectmycommunity

ALL of the 85 properties that can be part of this scheme should be included and your postcode should come up. If you have not already done so, please go to this site above and follow the instructions by putting in your postcode etc. and pledge your voucher. For your information (and excitement!) we have just reached our pledge target to go ahead with the project, but, Openreach would like a few more vouchers as a buffer for this project in case people drop out so please try.

Once you have pledged you should receive an email called “Gigabit voucher scheme – action required” from the DCMS (Department of Digital, Culture, Media & Sport). It has got a big black government official line at the top! Every beneficiary will get an email from DCMS asking them to read, understand and agree with the terms and conditions. You must click on the link within the email to accept them on the DCMS portal.

When you receive this email from them you have 28 days to respond otherwise you may lose your connection ability when the project is complete, see T&Cs.

FAQs from villagers regarding the Voucher Emails

1. VAT - Because we are using Rural Gigabit Vouchers no one is liable for paying VAT. I have this is writing from Openreach
2. Business registration - If you are a claiming a business voucher you will be given the chance to submit any evidence of trading, this can include:
   • A letter from HMRC confirming your UTR (Unique Tax Record) number
   • A VAT registration
   • Charity Registration
   • Certification of incorporation (Limited Companies).
   • Business bank account statement (From within the last three months)
3. Didn’t get your official DCMS Email? - Please note that the voucher emails can sometimes end up in the spam/junk folders, if you haven’t received an email please search “Gigabit voucher scheme – action required” in both your main folder and the spam/junk folders. If you’re still unable to locate the email please contact me directly confirming your correct email address and I will get it resent.
4. Who are the providers I have to sign up with? - Your current broadband provider may not be on the approved list and unfortunately you will to have change and you will need to do this for a minimum of 12 months as per the T&Cs. I have been advised this list is expanding and you can find it here. Currently Sky and Virgin are not supported.
5. How much will FTTP (Fibre to the premises cost me per month?) - Please see ALL of the UKs broadband providers on this list and look out for West Sussex region. Prices range hugely, and these should be cross-matched against the list above for availability. Fingers crossed we should have it in 12 months!

If you have any questions, please click the link for contact details.