BT Superfast in East London, UK?

Hi there,
Does anyone know when BT are going to roll out superfast broadband coverage to East London, UK?
Thanks

They already have.

East London contains a lot of properties, so if you do not have a superfast service from any provider, then you will need to be a bit more specific about the area to get a helpful answer.

A postcode might be useful, just saying East London doesn't help, I am located in East London and I have had FTTP since 2016 and areas around me have had either FTTP or FTTC since 2011 / 2012.

Also about 97% of London has access to Superfast speeds or better.

So a Post Code will narrow it down to an area and a cabinet to look up, you might already have it available to you and you have just not been told its available.

Paul

Edited by PaulKirby (Fri 10-Jul-20 14:41:39)

Hi there,
Postcode is E2 0JT. There is FTTC but only with Virgin Media who can't connect my property due to blocked cable duct.

Hi there,
E2 0JT. I didn't know I could look up a cabinet - there are two close to me apparently, but the one they want to use for mine has a blocked duct. I wonder why they don't use the other one but no one can tell me.

That postcode appears to be a single building, Openreach FTTC is available estimated at 80Mbps. It's also been surveyed by Hyperoptic.

That postcode, for a block of flats, and randomly selecting one on te BT checker suggests full 80Mbps FTTC through any ISP using the BT Openreach network.

https://www.broadbandchecker.btwholesale.com/#/ADSL/...

Just did the 2 checks and you should be able to get FTTC:

I did a check using flat 11A on that postcode shown below:

[Openreach Checker]
https://www.openreach.com/

Great news. Fibre to the Cabinet (FTTC) is now available to millions of UK homes and businesses – including yours.

[BT Wholesale Checker]
https://www.broadbandchecker.btwholesale.com/#/ADSL/...

Address FLAT 11A **** BETHNAL GREEN, LONDON E2 0JT on Exchange MILE END is served by Cabinet 43

That address has a FTTC speed range of 60.5Mbps to 80Mbps.

Hope that helps.

Paul

Hi there,
Thank you for that, but although the cabinet is there, the duct is blocked from the cabinet to the building and so it can't be installed by Virgin Media.

Why would Virgin Media be installing in BT ducts?

Do you already have a phone line?

Hi,
Do you know how long after they do a survey they request permission? I'm sure I filled out one of their surveys two years ago, they sent it by post, and they still haven't requested to install in our building yet : (
Thanks!

Hi,
I think Virgin Media have their own cable duct, for the cable from the cabinet to the building, and it is blocked. I don't think Virgin Media install into BT ducts. But I could be wrong because I have no idea what goes on between the different providers.
Anyway, maybe Virgin Media have their own cabinet? And cable duct?

Sorry, I forgot to answer about the phone line - yes I have a phone line.

You ask when BT are going to provide service - which they already do. Then you go on about Virgin Media? Why?

Just sign up for BT based service.

The service that is available to you is VDSL2 and there is also notionally Virgin Media cable services.

The VDSL2 is what BT, Plusnet, TalkTalk and Sky can sell you.

The Cable service which is available according to Virgin Media may have a blocked duct so may not be available, but that does not VDSL2 from being installed which runs over your existing telephone line and needs no new cables to the flat.

Poster is confusing Virgin Media network with Openreach network and appears to be unaware that they are two very different networks and ducts.

I want superfast 100 Mb+. I have been trying to get Virgin Media to provide the service but they can't sort out the blocked duct. I don't want to go with BT because Virgin Media is so much faster!

You'd need to speak to Hyperoptic direct - they are fairly quick to reply to emails so send them one.

What is your understanding of 'superfast' - perhaps that is the problem here.

Unfortunately Virgin cannot or will not provide you a service.

BT is available and by all accounts at fairly decent speeds. You asked in your title about BT superfast and people have answered.

If you want Virgin then badger Virgin - if you want superfast then get the BT service installed that is currently available to you.

Hi Mr Saffron,

But why can't they just unblock the duct? This is what I don't understand?

I think you are right - I think superfast is 100Mb +

VM probably need to dig up a road or footpath in order to dig down to find the blockage and remove it.

I had the same issue with a blocked duct and I only wanted a phone line. I think the cost of the works is too prohibitive for the returns. I had to order both phone and broadband in order that the duct was unblocked.

"Fast" isn't always the best way to look at it.

I asked when BT will provide superfast in London because I don't think 80Mb is very fast. It is not fast compared to Virgin Media, who are now offering 516 Mbs. Why am asking about BT? Because I can't get Virgin due to blocked duct so I'm wondering if BT will ever catch up and start offereing truly fast broadband - which to my mind, they don't do as yet. Sorry for confusion. I didn't realise that 80Mb is seen as superfast.

What is the best way to look at it then? As you can see I'm a newbie : )

You used a term that has a specific meaning though, which is what has confused people, per Ofcom:

Ofcom defines superfast broadband as a service which delivers a minimum download speed of at least 30 Mbit/s.

Ultrafast services are defined as being able to deliver broadband speeds that are greater than or equal to 300 Mbit/s. This definition includes G.fast, cable networks and full-fibre technologies.

If you want something faster than FTTC your options currently are to pester Virgin Media or Hyperoptic.

Edited by jpm (Fri 10-Jul-20 15:45:55)

Thank you for that and apologies for my confusion. I needed to ask about Ultrafast. I'm glad we got that cleared up!

What do you want to use your computer for?

As your area (but not your property) already has Virgin then it is quite possibly not on BT's priority list for delivery of faster services (ie FTTP). There is an incumbent that would reduce BT's ability to make profits. The amount of BT Ultrafast is still relatively low across the country and BT are likely to target areas where they are likely to get high returns - Virgin presence reduces the chances of getting that return.

It may even be that they will never deliver a faster service to your area as Virgin nominally will have you covered for gigabit access - your property being an outlier that can't currently get it due to blocked ducts. As said before, badger Virgin or ask them what it would take to get the issue sorted.

You could potentially go down the FTTPoD route and pay BT to put FTTP in for you. But, be warned that can be VERY expensive.

In reply to a post by ian72:

You could potentially go down the FTTPoD route and pay BT to put FTTP in for you. But, be warned that can be VERY expensive.

FoD is not available in MDUs, assuming thats where the OP lives.

Your best bet is to get in touch with Hyperoptic as MDUs in London are their bread & butter.

www.hyperoptic.com

Hi there,
Thank you for that. It might be worth upgrading my order to the fastest service and adding a phone line. I'm happy to do that if it solves the problem!

Government and Ofcom definition is 30 Mbps and faster - which the VDSL2 service fits into.

In reply to a post by General_Idea:

What is the best way to look at it then? As you can see I'm a newbie : )

The way I see it is that you have few options:
1: Sure Virgin Media, who might now offering 516Mbps but NOT to you due to the blockage, and when they will unblock it nobody knows, could be next week, in a month or two time, maybe a year or never, it boils down to cost.

2: You have access to BT's FTTC that can offer you up to 80Mbps (60Mb to 80Mb estimated) now.

3: You can go and contact Hyperoptic and ask them about your area, they install to Flats.

So you can endlessly wait and hope VM clears the blockage which they may never do, or you can get FTTC with BT, SKY, Zen etc now, or maybe soon if you are lucky get Hyperoptic installed.

But who ever you go with you need to choose what fits your usage and price.

Paul

What broadband do you have now? If nothing or ADSL, then while VDSL2 at 50 to 80 Mbps may not be the speeds you want it will be a vastly better experience than ADSL2+ or using your mobile.

Hi there,
They've been leafletting around here for a couple of years but no progress so far. This area is 99% social housing, so its not easy pickings for them like the new flats at Canary Wharf etc. I have signed up on their website a couple of times in the last couple of years to say I'm interested but they have not got back to me at all.
I've just been on the Live Chat with them and they say they are working on it. They've been working on it for a few years so far. So I'm not holding out for that.

P.S. Just to confuse things further - they call their broadband 'hyperfast'!

It could be that Hyperoptic are having trouble obtaining permission (wayleave) from the building owner or management company to install their fibre cabling. Its a fairly common reason why Hyperoptic (and other FTTP operators) are unable to bring FTTP to certain MDU buildings.

I suggest asking Hyperoptic what the wayleave status is, if they've already got the numbers willing to take up their service- usually 30% of residents.

Edited by deleted (Fri 10-Jul-20 18:59:23)

In reply to a post by Highland76:

FoD is not available in MDUs, assuming thats where the OP lives.

That's my reason for not looking at FoD, when VDSL wasn't good enough for my use case.

In reply to a post by Highland76:

I suggest asking Hyperoptic what the wayleave status is, if they've already got the numbers willing to take up their service- usually 30% of residents.

Could be a challenge when residents can already get FTTC at 60 to 80 Mbps.

asked when BT will provide superfast in London because I don't think 80Mb is very fast. It is not fast compared to Virgin Media, who are now offering 516 Mbs. Why am asking about BT? Because I can't get Virgin due to blocked duct so I'm wondering if BT will ever catch up and start offereing truly fast broadband - which to my mind, they don't do as yet. Sorry for confusion. I didn't realise that 80Mb is seen as superfast.


superfast is inexcess of 30 m/bps as i assume you dont have FTTC currently they you are probably on about 6 - 10 ,megabits -- which is a darn slower that the 80 m/bds you think is not enough (really !!!!!!)

these forums never cease to amaze me / (or perhaps amaze is not the right word)

Dear Fastman,
I have 80Mb broadband which is not fast enough. That is why I want the ultrafast/hyperfast that Virgin Media and Hyperoptic are offering.

You assumption is incorrect as assumptions often are. Is it that difficult to ask a question before being amazed or whatever word you were searching for?

I see E2 0JT Silvester House in Hyperoptic map and the representative is Lisa Smith in the registering interest page same as with my building. This makes me suspicious! Is your building managed by EastendHomes?

I ask this because my building also suffers wayleave agreement here in E1 Central London and I'm a Hyperoptic Champion of my building. If you are under the same management company EastendHomes that might explain why our buildings have difficulty getting the permission for FTTP. While local authority may be Tower Hamlets the management company is managed by different private owners.

My area here was once on a plan for FTTP from both Openreach and Hyperoptic. But EastendHomes refused to grant permission and instead we got upgraded to FTTC instead a few months ago after many years on EO Line. I could not convince the management team last 5 years to sign wayleave, they personally told me on the phone that the Technical Services Manager does not want to proceed with Hyperoptic and if they want to grant permission for Fibre they would do it with another provider.

All the residential buildings around my area that are managed by this one management has no FTTP but others that are by different managements have it.

Until we can't get wayleave agreement we won't get FTTP installed unless the government implements new legislations to force fibre installations into MDU's.

Hi there,
Thank you so much for checking this out. No our building is managed by the owners, Clarion Housing. As I said I have registered interest a few times, but I have never heard back from Hyperoptic, except another leaflet a year ago asking us to register interest again. I chatted with them yesterday on Live Chat but they again said they said they have no idea when our building will be connected - after at first saying saying 9 - 12 months which I thought was a guess anyway. It seems they have no plans to connect our building. I also found their coverage map but my building is not mentioned, although neighbouring buildings are. The map I found is here:
https://hyperoptic.com/map/
Are you looking at a different map?

If you do a search for your postcode on Hyperoptic's website, you get this:

https://postimg.cc/GHMf9bJw

Two likely reasons why there's not much progress:

1) Hyperoptic haven't received enough interest from the residents - they need around 30% - which might be very difficult considering 80/20 FTTC speeds are already available.

or

2) Wayleave issues

If its 1) then you might need to talk to other residents and convince them of the benefits of full fat fibre. But you might have a battle on your hands if they're perfectly happy with their current speeds....

Edited by deleted (Sat 11-Jul-20 09:36:16)

Hi there! We'd also like to double-check this for you, even though you already chatted with our team about this. Please send us a PM with your full address and we'll be back in touch.

I think OP will find that VM have not put new lines into flats for a fair few years now.If all cables are in place then ok to swich on but overwise its a no go.

Why is 80 mbps not fast enough? What do you do with your line and what do you want to do with a faster line?

Your not giving much away.

General

Dear Fastman,

I have 80Mb broadband which is not fast enough. That is why I want the ultrafast/hyperfast that Virgin Media and Hyperoptic are offering.


best of luck then (another person who wants some thing who cant get if from the provider they wants and then blames Openreach because they did not provided what your preferred provider is offering (

so then go and pester them and not not grump; about openreach delivery or roll, out

if you got a blocked a blocked duct or waleave issues (same as blazing speed) best of luck with that (soundsl like you got same issue as blazing speed)

MDU no wayleave aggreement (in the building) no fibre ever from anyone

Hi broadband66,
I'm telling you that 80mbps is not fast enough for my needs. Many people need faster than that, hence the growing market in ultrafast or hyperfast.
I didn't join this forum to have a discussion about how I can manage with 80 mbps. What I do with my line is my business. What I will do with a faster line is my business.

Dear Fastman,
I am not blaming Openreach for anything. I asked a question as I thought some clever people might know more about this than I do. I have learned a lot on this forum thank you and I now understand the issues a lot better than I did, and Hyperoptic have even reached out to me here which was most unexpected.
I'm not about to go and 'pester' anyone, and I'm not having a 'grump'. You really are jumping to conclusions.
I'm not stuck with 'no fibre ever from anyone' because I have fast fibre at my other property and so I will continue to enjoy that, and when I move house next year I will have fast fibre at my new place too, so lucky me. The problem I am trying to solve is having ultrafast at my current place here.
Your post really is unpleasant and rude, please do not respond to me again as I don't want to deal with your rudeness.

The problem I am trying to solve is having ultrafast at my current place here.

Accept it , you're not going to get ultrafast in the foreseeable future unless Virgin choose to unblock the ducts or Hyperoptic take pity on you, MDUs are low on the list for both Virgin and Openreach.

If you're so anxious for higher download speeds, most want higher upload speeds, then get another Openreach line and bond the two lines.

Hi MCM,
Thank you so much for that suggestion, I had forgotten about that option, someone mentioned to me it was possible a few months ago - they were going to do just that at their place in the country, which will never get any fast service because it is isolated and far from any towns. I didn't think about using that option for myself, but it is at least realistic and possible.
Many thanks!

MCM hope things good with you as ever

Hi Fastman,

Still jogging along fine thanks but health not too good nowadays. Whilst faster might be nice am happy with the rock solid 80/20 we are all getting now. Thank you. Plenty here WFH and haven't heard a peep from any of them complaining about their speeds. Can't say the same for some of my friends elsewhere including one in W6 whose cabinet hasn't been updated and is stuck on ADSL 3-4/0.5 (0.1 on a bad day).

MCM drop me a message and i'll have a nose

You won't get much help with that attitude. You will not get faster where you are without paying a large sum to unblock duct or FTTP so suck it up and stop moaning.

I'm sure 80 mbps is more than enough, you just want to brag.

Actually I've had a lot of helpful responses thanks, though just rudeness from your bad-tempered self.
Some people just need fast broadband - get over it.
As for demanding to know what people use their internet for - don't be nosey.
I suggest you get a life instead of busying yourself with other people's internet requirements.
As it happens I'm more than happy to pay a large sum for unblocking the duct and/or FTTP - I'm not moaning about anything - that would be your good self.

BTW broadband66,
Please don't bother responding on this thread in future, you are not helping. If you can't think of anything nice to say then you should just keep quiet.
Please don't respond to this as I consider your messages to be harassment and trolling.
Please go away and bother someone else with your nonsense.

In reply to a post by General_Idea:

Hi there,
Thank you so much for checking this out. No our building is managed by the owners, Clarion Housing. As I said I have registered interest a few times, but I have never heard back from Hyperoptic, except another leaflet a year ago asking us to register interest again. I chatted with them yesterday on Live Chat but they again said they said they have no idea when our building will be connected - after at first saying saying 9 - 12 months which I thought was a guess anyway. It seems they have no plans to connect our building. I also found their coverage map but my building is not mentioned, although neighbouring buildings are. The map I found is here:
https://hyperoptic.com/map/
Are you looking at a different map?

Yes, this is how I found out. https://hyperoptic.com/register-interest/?pafid=7843389
I just selected a random address from your postcode. It seems like all registered interests have been complete. Survey and Building assessments have been complete as well. But Hyperoptic did not request building permission yet. Or maybe they have but it hasn't been reflected yet.

You can email that lady [email protected] who is representative for your building. She will give you more information if she has been in contact with the technical management team of Clarion Housing.

Some positive hints give me that if you had Virgin Media and your building management originally gave wayleave consent for Virgin Media, they are more likely to give permission to Hyperoptic or another altnet provider!

Do you have any monthly or yearly residential office meetings with your authority? You can then bring this forward to their attention and let them know that Virgin Media has a blocked duct, "can you grant permission to another altnet FTTP provider". It is likely that based on this circumstance they should grant you permission.

Unless, of-course that original Virgin Media wayleave was consented before the Clarion Housing takeover. Like for example my building is owned by EastendHomes since 2005 prior to that it was managed by the council. If FTTP was available before their takeover maybe I would've had full fibre. All buildings as a result suffer from this wayleave.

I got rejected FTTP for Openreach and Hyperoptic and then openreach upgraded my EO Line to FTTC in October 2019. There are still external and internal renovation works done in my building. After these are complete I will try again.

Also you can try contacting several altnet providers like https://communityfibre.co.uk/ https://www.g.network/ https://www.swishfibre.com/ https://www.purefibre.london/

The more FTTP providers you are in contact with the higher the chances you attract one of them to come forward and contact your building management. Also speak to one of your neighbours, that way by involving more neighbours you can give more pressure to your management team.

It all depends really on the management. Some considerate ones will agree wayleave with minimum fuss and others you'd have to nag them. 4 out of 10 buildings suffer with this wayleave permission issue. The government will eventually bring new legislation's to ease those wayleave restrictions. It's obviously going to have to happen because otherwise it will be impossible to get the whole country fully fibred.

Being obnoxious doesn't help.

As you are a newbie on here and the fact your original post suggested you didn't know much about broadband then others and myself were trying to help. You've already got fast broadband.

"As for demanding to know what people use their internet for "

I wasn't demanding, I asked why you required superfast broadband. It was a legitimate question to ascertain what options were available to you.

VM might be fast but if you are a gamer then sometimes their latency can be an issue and speed isn't necessarily the best thing for gaming.

Stop asking this forum for advice then. It's VM you should be badgering!

Wow, I asked you to stop bothering me and you still persist. You should be careful with that. I know that being obnoxious doesn't help, that's why YOU SHOULD STOP being obnoxious. I haven't been obnoxious in any way thank you. I HAVE been assertive of my own right to privacy and not to answer pointless questions.
Re: Fast Broadband - I haven't got the fast broadband that I want. Please don't try to define what I consider to be fast enough, since that is up to me to define.
I am not a gamer FYI. I need the speed for my work.
I will ask this forum for as much advice as I require, it's not for you to tell me what to do. Please stop trying to control me. You seem to have control issues.
I will ask you again to leave me alone. You have been told that I consider your continued attention to my business to be harassment. Please stay away from my thread and let me converse with other more interesting and helpful people without you constantly interrupting.
Really, please leave me alone. Thanks,

As this is not a ping pong match, drawing the thread to a close.

Best course for original poster if there are outstanding issues is to start a new thread covering those issues.