Campaign brings broadband home.

Byline: By Liz Hands

The fight to get a rural community better connected has been won after 10-months of struggle.

The drive to get Stocksfield, Northumberland, and its surrounding villages connected to the same high-speed internet services available in urban areas started in January under the leadership of businessman Jeff Siddle.

His Stocksfield Broadband Initiative managed to sign up 384 people - 34 registrations more than the trigger level set by BT - for making the investment in the local telephone exchange to get the area online.

"I just didn't think it was fair that places like Newcastle and larger towns in our area like Hexham had access to this when we didn't," said Jeff, who works in IT for an American investment bank.

"It's vital for faster connection to the internet - 10 times faster than a normal service - and that is becoming increasingly important to businesses.

"I thought it could put businesses off moving to this area and it could stop people who work from home, like myself, from being able to. I decided the only way to get something done was to start this campaign."

His success comes on the back of the Country Land and Business Association's Broadband Rural Britain Campaign to get equal opportunities for rural businesses.

"In commercial terms it could soon be a choice of broadband or bankruptcy," said Mike Ashton of the CLA.

Jeff started a poster campaign in January, with leaflet drops and educational events to inform people about what broadband could offer them.

"A lot of people have put an awful lot of hard work into the campaign and we're delighted it's all paid off. We had a bit of a celebratory meeting yesterday when broadband was launched here," added Jeff.

Jeff's wife Julya and his seven-year-old son Benjamin are two of the first people to use it.

"I've never been very computer literate, but I've learnt a lot since this campaign started and it's going to come in really handy for Benjamin when he gets a bit older," said Julya.

With one success under his belt for Stocksfield - and the surrounding areas of Mickley, Bywell and Newton - Jeff is now turning his attention to help others.

"I've picked up a lot of information on the best way to get started on something like this and I'm giving advice to other communities in the Tyne Valley like Wylam and Corbridge who are trying to do something similar. Hopefully, I can help them get the same result we have here."