Rural 5G Support For Shropshire

DCMS awards £3.3m to support a two-year project that will examine how 5G technology can deliver health and social care services in Shropshire.

13:25 24 February 2020

Shropshire is set to launch a two-year project that focuses on delivering health and social care services using 5G technology. The scheme is part of the West Mercia Rural 5G that aims to explore the full potentials of the next generation mobile network in rural areas, especially on the borders were Herefordshire, Shropshire and Worcestershire meet.

 

The project is fully funded by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), which recently announced the awarding of £3.3million to Worcestershire County Council, who will be the accountable body for the project.

 

The scheme will explore how 5G can enhance various local services as well as identify infrastructure challenges when planning, building and operating a rural 5G network. Worcestershire County Council will partner with local NHS organisations, The University of Worcester, University Centre Shrewsbury and West Midlands Academic Health Science Network for the project. The 5G network, on the other hand, will be built and operated by Three.

 

Lee Chapman, Shropshire Council’s Cabinet member for organisational transformation and digital infrastructure, said: “While we still need to do further work with Worcestershire County Council on the detail of our council’s involvement, this project offers Shropshire Council a significant opportunity and is very positive news.

 

“At a time of increasing demand for public services, improvements in connected technologies offer new ways of working that can help maintain and improve service delivery and quality of life for our residents and our businesses.