‘WE ALL want Superfast Broadband but we want it underground’- that was the view of a disgruntled resident which drew applause from a packed Droitwich Community Hall at Wednesday night’s Full Fibre meeting.
But Matt Smith from Full Fibre said, while the firm was aware the works would not be popular, it was ‘critical infrastructure’.
People hit out at a government order meaning the poles have ‘permitted development’ and that Full Fibre did not need planning permission from Wychavon District Council to start work.
Full Fibre is only legally required to notify the council 28 days before work begins and there is no requirement to consult.
People slammed the process as ‘undemocratic’, while others claimed they were directly told to ‘go away’ when approaching Full Fibre about concerns over existing works.
Mr Smith said Full Fibre opted to write to all affected houses to be open about the plans and offer the chance to tweak them.
He added 34 changes had been made to the location of poles in Droitwich based on feedback.
However, people said in some cases they only received these letters two weeks before work was due to start, giving them little opportunity to respond before construction.
A petition, gathered by resident Richard Whittall from people living on a housing estate on Suffolk Way, had gleaned 122 signatures from frustrated residents calling for the network to be installed underground.
Full Fibre claim the Government wants 85 per cent of the UK to have access to the network by 2025.
Mr Smith also explained why the firm was putting up poles rather than digging underground.
Around a third of Droitwich properties, built in the 1970s and 1980s, are currently served by direct bury copper.
Mr Smith claims to retrofit these areas with underground Full Fibre would be more ‘complicated and costly’ than it would be on new-build estates.
Full Fibre would have to dig across every private drive and garden even if people did not want a service.
He said getting permission to do this was legally complex, time-consuming and up to ten times more costly than installing poles.
Residents raised concerns about the poles’ environmental impact, health and safety and expressed dismay at having cables right outside their windows.
They also asked about the cost of maintaining and eventually replacing the degradable wooden structures.
Mr Smith said the poles and cables should not be within 2m of people’s homes and health and safety concerns would be reported and acted upon.
Openreach, building its own full-fibre in Droitwich, said it had not yet undertaken physical surveys to determine whether it needed to build poles but said it would work with the community, using its existing network of ducts and poles. But, it added, new poles may be needed in some places.
