Consultation has taken place:

The Borders Broadband Project distributed two questionnaires between September 2011 and February 2012 to understand the local market and gauge demand for improved services; one targeted at businesses and one (tailored to each county) targeted at residents distributed to every household in Herefordshire.  There were 5057 household responses from the county. 

In early 2010 Ecotec undertook a detailed survey of businesses in Shobdon; Ledbury and Ludlow (just over the border into Shropshire) as part of the West Midlands Rural Broadband Infrastructure Study.  The project conducted 78 random telephone-based surveys across a broad range of business sectors.  In addition, a separate postal survey was conducted in conjunction with the Federation of Small Businesses with 66 responses received; making the total response 144 businesses.

For Herefordshire Employers Survey in 2010 around 10% of Herefordshire’s Businesses responded to this survey and it represents the most comprehensive picture yet of the County’s economic factors.  81.5% of the respondents said they needed broadband Internet access in order to effectively operate.

Formal State Aid public consultation was held during August and September 2011.