The Enterprise Zone at Blackpool Airport secured the UK gateway for the North Atlantic Loop, an international communications network fibre optic cable connecting Blackpool directly with New York.  The benefit to the Fylde area is increased access to high-capacity, ultra-low latency with some of the world’s fastest, most resilient internet speeds of up to 1 gigabit connection.

What is Gigabit capable broadband?

• Gigabit broadband is an internet connection that offers speeds of 1 gigabit per second (1Gb) or more.
• 1 gigabit = 1,000 megabits so it’s a huge leap in connection speeds – to put that into context, a 1Gb service would allow you to download a HD film in seconds…
• Full fibre services are capable of being symmetrical, meaning the download and upload speeds are the same.

Fibre Blackpool mean across the Fylde region:

• Fast, reliable performance – no more buffering or waiting.
• Hyperfast speeds to power your bandwidth hungry applications.
• A range of competitively priced services
• A range of premium services will also be available where a dedicated line is required.

How do local businesses benefit from the investment?

Gigabit vouchers, which are a one-off contribution to SMEs, can be used by small businesses and the local communities surrounding them to contribute to the installation cost of a gigabit-capable connection. 

• Businesses can claim up to £2,500 against the cost of connection either individually or as part of a group project.

Businesses can access the voucher scheme by registering their interest with one of the suppliers involved in the FIBRE BLACKPOOL scheme. The scheme is supplier-led which means suppliers will be requesting the voucher on behalf of their customers. 

Fylde Council has superb connections with two top UK Universities, UCLan and Lancaster. In addition, it is served by Myerscough, Preston, Cardinal Newman and Blackpool and the Fylde Colleges.  All have some of the best research and development facilities, a wealth of courses in all sectors and superb offerings for start-ups, micro’s, SME’s to major employers and internationals.

The borough boasts several key employment sites providing all manner of advanced manufacturing and engineering facilities, light industrial, workshops, office space and within the town centres a plethora of retail and hospitality premises.  Many plots are still available for freehold and leasehold.

The Borough is located 55 minutes from Manchester and Liverpool, 20 mins from Preston and a mere five minutes from Blackpool Airport which is still taking none-commercial flights. Two new M55 link roads are underway vastly improving the commercial linkages to the motorway network, and there are plans to increase the train service offer for the existing South Fylde Rail Link making access to Kirkham, Lytham and St Annes from Preston more frequent.

The Fylde Council Local Plan identifies four Strategic Locations for Development which will be the focus for the level of housing and economic growth required in Fylde up to the end of the plan period. The four Strategic Locations are: Lytham and St Annes; Fylde – Blackpool Periphery; Warton; and Kirkham and Wesham. To accommodate the level of development proposed, the Local Plan includes a masterplan policy for all of the Strategic Locations to ensure that new development on strategic sites is planned and delivered in an effective manner.