You may have seen recently that CityFibre had been awarded the Project Gigabit contract for Suffolk.  Project Gigabit is the government’s flagship programme to enable hard-to-reach communities to access lightning-fast gigabit-capable broadband. The four-year programme will see around 136,000 premises across Suffolk and parts of surrounding counties connected to our fibre-to-the-premises network.   

We wanted to let you know that work is due to start in the Kessingland area over the coming weeks,  possibly at the end of August/beginning of September.  As we move from area to area, we endeavour to let affected parish and town councils know ahead of time. 

The contractor carrying out the work on our behalf is OCU Utility Services. Wherever possible, existing duct and pole infrastructure will be used to reduce the amount of construction required.  However, new infrastructure will be needed and we are working closely with the council’s highways team to coordinate any work that is required. 

Why is this work so important?  In a rapidly changing world, we rely more and more on digital connectivity and the UK needs to ensure its residents and businesses can cope with future demands.  This is not just about being able to better browse the internet or stream television programmes.  There are many other factors to consider such as:

• Households have an ever-increasing number of internet connected devices like smart speakers, domestic appliances, heating control systems and doorbells.  

• Smart TVs and gaming consoles become more and more sophisticated requiring faster internet speeds.

• The Covid 19 pandemic has demonstrated how important fast and reliable broadband is. Essential services such as healthcare and education are now increasingly online and regular homeworking has become the norm for many. 

• When buying a house the speed of the internet is now one of the top purchasing factors.   

If you would like to know more about our build process, please visit cityfibre.com/build.  Our latest project information, including an FAQ and a way to register for updates is available at  www.cityfibre.com/projectgigabit.  When it’s time to order services, residents and businesses will also be able to choose from a range of internet service providers. 

If you have any immediate questions then please let us know, preferably via Contact_CityfibreSouth@cityfibre.com.  We will provide further updates as the build progresses.

 

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Suffolk Highways Road Closure  -   For your awareness, the works detailed below have been postponed due to unforseen circumstances.  We will inform you as soon as we have further information​

We are planning to carry out pre footway resurfacing repairs along U1601 Wash Lane, Kessingland.

For the duration of the road closure, through traffic will be diverted via Church Road, Whites Lane, B1437, Field Lane and vice versa.

As we plan roadworks in advance, we schedule extra days to allow for bad weather or other delays beyond our control. If we need to make major changes to our work dates, we will update the information signs on site and our social media channels accordingly. When we close the road and put a diversion in place, the route needs to be accessible to vehicles of all shapes and sizes. We make our diversions as clear as possible by placing appropriate signing along the route. The latest updates on our works can be found on the One.Network website.

There may be times that essential emergency works are required to take place on the highway network without advanced notice – you can follow Suffolk Highways on Twitter for the latest emergency roadwork updates.

If you have any queries on the above, please contact us on 0345 606 6171.

Suffolk Highways

www.suffolk.gov.uk/highways 

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Kessingland is awarded Joint Best Large Village in Suffolk.

At the recent Suffolk awards Kessingland hit the double when we were awarded joint Best Large Village of the year at the 2023 Suffolk Awards.  This follows on from the village being awarded as Best East Suffolk Community earlier in the year.  Cllr Ian Graham, Chair of the parish council noted that "This award is for the whole community not just the parish council. The award recognises how the village comes together, works together and supports each other through groups such as the Kessingland Events Group and the Hidden Needs Forum as well as all the community groups within the village.  The parish council believes in working with the community which is why we hope that people will take the time to complete the village survey as we'd really like to hear peoples views and work together to make Kessingland even more a great place to live."