Report calls for ‘connectivity champions’ in UK councils

Better digital connectivity in the UK requires better communication and collaboration between local authorities and the telecoms industry, according to a new report.

The publication from the Digital Connectivity Forum (DCF), an advisory body to the UK government, looks at the role of local authorities as “enablers of digital connectivity”. DCF was launched last year out of the Broadband Stakeholder Group, with members made up of broadband providers and equipment vendors as well as the BBC, the TechUK trade association and the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology.

The analysis, based on interviews with local authorities, network operators and other stakeholders, concludes that there is inconsistency across local authorities in terms of their approach to digital infrastructure deployment and that “more can be done to improve communication on all sides”.

It finds that while there is “consensus that increased use of public assets for deployment of digital infrastructure is a good idea”, there are still practical issues to be worked out, such as  poor asset data, “complicated, restrictive and expensive site agreements” and “conflicting policies”. The report calls for the drive to reduce street clutter to be balanced with the need for digital infrastructure.

Alex Mather, Head of the Digital Connectivity Forum, said: “Much positive work has taken place, particularly in terms of legislative changes, over recent years to reduce barriers to the deployment of high-speed fixed and mobile connectivity. This has resulted in real benefits to the UK economy and society, with over 70 percent of homes across the UK having access to gigabit-capable broadband.

“However, challenges remain at a local level especially regarding poor communications and collaboration between local authorities and network builders. This is resulting in high levels of variation between local authority areas in terms of their rollout of both fixed and mobile digital infrastructure.”

Digital champions

The report makes 27 recommendations for local governments, telecom companies and central government.

Key recommendations include that the government should consider requiring local authorities to have a digital champion, with a clearly defined role and allocated funding.

“Having a single point of contact who can act as a ‘digital champion’ is seen as a significant differentiator across local authorities when compared to those where a single point of contact is more operationally focused on planning or highways/roads,” according to the report.

“Where good practice exists, a digital champion holds a role solely focused on digital and is typically a relatively senior ‘economic’ or ‘place’ based role within the local authority with a strong degree of internal influence.”

A similar digital champion role could also be set up within telecom firms to improve communications, with local authorities reporting that it’s often difficult to find the right contact.

The report highlights the importance of a local digital strategy and also calls for local authorities to embrace flexible permitting and take part in further flexi-permit trials.

It says that local authorities and telecoms operators should work together to better educate planning authorities on the technical requirements of 5G and gigabit-capable broadband infrastructure.

A recommendation for telecom operators is to engage early with local authorities as a standard part of their planning processes to avoid deployment issues and ensure alignment with other street works activities.

Central government is urged to review pre-planning guidance and analyse the fees applied by planning authorities to ensure that digital infrastructure deployment is not held back.

Empowering local authorities

Steve Smith, Principal Consultant at FarrPoint, the consultancy that conducted the research, commented: “During this study, we spoke to over 26 different local authorities and related organisations from all parts of the UK who are all active in supporting the rollout of digital infrastructure. While conducting these interviews, we noted a number of great digital initiatives and also identified where there are still a few improvements to be made.

“As part of the study recommendations, we highlight that local authorities need to be empowered through more consistent, centralised policies and legislation in order to help them accelerate the connectivity infrastructure rollout and champion innovation. Communication between local authorities, central government and telecom operators is the key component to success, so we would like to see industry and local government openly sharing best practices and simply talking to each other more.”

The Local Government Association (LGA), which represents councils in England and Wales, backed the calls for local digital connectivity champions.

 Councillor Mark Hawthorne, the LGA’s digital connectivity spokesperson, said: “Fast and reliable connectivity is now a necessity and councils have been doing all they can to ensure this is rolled out to the hardest-to-reach areas.

“We have been calling for a local digital champion in every local area, to act as a central point of contact to help extend gigabit-capable broadband and mobile coverage across the country as quickly as possible.

“Given the right funding and opportunity to work in partnership with government and providers, councils can play a far greater role targeting communities most in need, driving up demand and providing digital upskilling to support the rollout.

“Tackling the digital divide will be important to levelling up in every community, ensuring everyone has the connectivity they need to thrive.”