Making a splash: Superfast broadband team.

BT MEMBERS of the Superfast Cymru team have raised over £2,000 for the RNLI in Tenby as a result of their efforts at the Saundersfoot New Year’s Day Swim. Joining the hundreds of swimmers that took part in the popular annual event, the 12-strong team, made up of a mixture of managers, engineers and marketers donned their swimsuits and braved the icy conditions for the much loved charity. Speaking after the event BT senior project manager, Ynyr Roberts, said:

“We wanted to support a charity that plays a vital role in the community and we’re delighted to have raised over £2,000 for such a worthy cause. “Taking a dip in the Saundersfoot sea was certainly refreshing and a change to our normal day jobs of being up a telegraph pole or having our heads in roadside cabinets. “The people of Pembrokeshire will know we’ve been working hard around the county to bring fast fibre broadband to communities throughout the area. This will continue in 2015 as more and more premises get access to superfast internet speeds.”

Earlier this week it was announced that Saundersfoot had become one of the latest exchange areas in Wales to benefit from fast fibre broadband. More than 23,000 homes and businesses are already able to access fast fibre broadband in Pembrokeshire as a result of Superfast Cymru . Money raised by BT members of the Superfast Cymru team will be used to help the RNLI to train and equip Tenby’s lifesavers.

Tenby RNLI Lifeboat Operations Manager Phil Rees, said: “As a charity, which relies on voluntary contributions and donations for income, we are thrilled with this generous donation which will help our crews to save even more lives at sea. “People fundraise for the RNLI in many different ways, but the Superfast Cymru team certainly went above and beyond by braving icy seas to support us. We are so very grateful for their efforts.”

In addition to Ynyr Roberts the BT team was made up of Lee Marston, Owain Twitchett, Ashlee Thomas, Rhys Thomas, Alan Farmer, Wes Sheldon, Leighton Quick, James Stephens, Charlie-Ann Haydock, Susi Marston and colleagues from Carillion Telent, a contractor for BT. Delivering high speed fibre broadband across Wales, Superfast Cymru is a partnership between BT and Welsh Government, with additional funding from UK Government and the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF).

Funding of £205m has been provided by the Welsh Government, the UK Government and the European Regional Development Fund, with BT contributing a further £220m to deliver fibre across Wales via its commercial rollout and the Superfast Cymru programme. Fibre broadband will help transform the broadband landscape across Wales and enable local businesses in Pembrokeshire to compete on a global level.

Highspeed broadband makes it possible for businesses to be located anywhere and improves opportunities for business creativity and entrepreneurship. At home, fibre broadband enables a family to simultaneously download a movie, watch a TV replay service, surf the internet and play games online all at the same time.

A whole album can be downloaded in less than 30 seconds and a feature length HD movie in less than 10 minutes, whilst high-resolution photos can be uploaded to Facebook in seconds. In addition to Saundersfoot, superfast broadband is also available to residents and businesses served by the Pembroke, Milford Haven, Neyland, Johnstone and Haverfordwest exchanges.

Households and businesses which want superfast speeds need to contact an internet service provider (ISP) to sign up to receive fast fibre – the upgrade is not automatic. There are a variety ISPs offering fibre broadband in Wales so customers can shop around and choose the package that is best for them. If they choose not to upgrade to fibre broadband, they will be able to continue using their existing broadband service.