This contract forms an integral part of the Fastershire Broadband Strategy 2014-18 in which the strategic partnership between Herefordshire Council and Gloucestershire County Council are seeking to extend the reach of Next Generation Access Broadband (‘NGA’) to rural parts of both counties which have yet to benefit from such services.

Since 2012, Fastershire has been working with BT using BDUK and Local Authority Funds to deploy fibre based services throughout its eligible area. This deployment is now complete in the area covered by this tender and 6 495 premises have been identified that will not have benefited from a fibre service as a result of this phase of the funding.

This tender relates to stage 4 of the strategy which can be obtained from the Fastershire website www.fastershire.com Its aim is to procure an NGA solution for as many of the premises which are as yet unreached in the Cotswolds as possible.

Specifically, the contract will seek to build a broadband network that will provide;

— a wholesale broadband service open to all Communication Providers on a non-discriminatory basis; with

— the capability to access NGA broadband by the greatest number of the circa. 6 000 eligible premises as possible.

The contractor will be expected to provide substantial investment into the broadband network and to own and manage the risks associated with developing and operating the broadband network on a wholesale basis including, but not limited to, take-up risks.

The maximum available public subsidy is 3 000 000 GBP which will be funded equally by Gloucestershire County Council and BDUK.