The man behind the installation of the new lightning fast broadband for Hastings started his business out of frustration as he struggled to find decent broadband for his family.

This week Lightning Fibre Chief Executive Ben Ferriman confirmed the roll-out of lightning fast broadband for Hastings is well underway.

Having announced a multi-million pound partnership with leading infrastructure and private equity investment manager, Foresight Group Lightning Fibre expect full fibre installation across Hastings will eventually reach more than 45,000 homes and businesses. 

The company was founded three years ago with the aim of building what Mr Ferriman calls, “a truly future proofed cutting-edge full fibre network”. More than that he says he wants to provide a quality service with the added bonus of doing it with a “community-centric approach.”

Work began in Eastbourne in early 2020 and the long awaited Hastings roll-out is now underway. 

Mr Ferriman says: “I live in Eastbourne and the poor connectivity really frustrated me. Knowing Hastings also struggled I decided to level up both towns by building our own dedicated fibre optic network to give our communities the connectivity they deserve.

“Lightning Fibre is building high quality networks across East Sussex, creating quality local jobs and delivering a high-quality service at an affordable and competitive price for our customers.”

Initially, the full fibre upgrade will cover TN34, 35, 37 and 38; with additional, surrounding areas under consideration. Further announcements of local roll outs are expected from the company in the coming months. 

“Research shows that once an area has a full fibre 1Gbps network, property prices and local economies are positively impacted. Lightning Fibre’s infrastructure upgrade will make the town even more appealing to people and businesses looking to relocate,” says Mr Ferriman. 

Councillor Colin Fitzgerald, deputy leader of Hastings Borough Council, said: “This is tremendous news for Hastings, our residents and businesses.

“We have campaigned for years to improve our connectivity, both physical and virtual and it is great to see that we are about to benefit from hyper-fast broadband. The pandemic of the last year has meant many of us have had to work from home and this kind of broadband will help both local residents and businesses and those looking to relocate here. It’s great to see that so many of the people employed on the project are locally based.”

According to Lightning Fibre full fibre optic networks are not just the fastest, they are also the greenest way to deliver broadband, the company says a full fibre network creates 88 per cent less greenhouse gas per 1Gb compared to other broadband technologies. 

“We’re a community-centric company and we sponsor local community grassroots football teams, local good causes and we’re a proud and active member of the Hastings Chamber of Commerce, helping to connect local businesses and help each other thrive,” says Mr Ferriman. 

https://www.lightningfibre.co.uk/about