GUEST COLUMN:
Richard Anderson
Business Development Manager - Wales
BT
For many businesses, the question of location has always carried a practical calculation. Can we get the right people? Can we reach customers? Can we move goods, manage suppliers, and operate efficiently from here? Increasingly, another question sits alongside those: can the digital infrastructure support the business we are trying to build?
In parts of Mid Wales, that question has not always had the answer businesses need. The region has many strengths, but it can also feel as though investment naturally flows elsewhere first. We often see major infrastructure investments focus on the south of Wales and, increasingly, the north. For those of us who live and work in Mid Wales, there is a clear need to ensure that the region is not overshadowed.
That is why BT’s work with Growing Mid Wales on a Business Park Full Fibre to the Premises project is so important. It is a practical intervention designed to deliver full fibre infrastructure to 14 business parks across Powys and Ceredigion, covering around 127 premises, as well as a number of additional premises that will benefit from the rollout.
At one level, this is about building a gigabit-capable backbone. In plain terms, it means businesses will have access to much greater speed and capacity, giving them the foundation to do considerably more online and through digital systems. But the bigger point is not about technology for its own sake. This is about enabling business growth.
Every business park contains a mix of firms. Some may be digital-first, while others may be manufacturing, professional services, trades, food and drink, creative, logistics or any number of other sectors. They will not all describe themselves as technology businesses. In many cases, digital tools may not be the product they sell or the service they deliver. Yet digital connectivity increasingly underpins how they operate, promote themselves, reach customers, launch new services, manage data and improve productivity.
That is the real opportunity here. Full fibre infrastructure gives businesses the platform to adopt the services and tools that suit their own needs. More firms are moving to cloud-based services. Many are looking at how newer technologies, including AI, can help them become more productive, more efficient and more competitive. Others simply need reliable, high-capacity connectivity to support day-to-day operations that now depend on digital systems.
Without the core infrastructure in place, it is much harder for businesses to take advantage of those opportunities. It is also harder for a region to attract new investment, new employers and higher-skilled activity. If Mid Wales wants to support existing firms and encourage new businesses to locate here, particularly in areas such as digital technology, AI and cybersecurity, then strong digital infrastructure is not a nice to have. It is a basic requirement.
The business parks included in this intervention are not the easiest places to reach. In fact, many of the premises being targeted through the project sit outside existing commercial plans because they are among the harder and more costly locations to serve. That is precisely where a public-private partnership approach can add value.
BT is working with Growing Mid Wales to build the infrastructure, supported by public investment, so that businesses in these locations are not left behind. The aim is to ensure that firms in Mid Wales can access the kind of digital infrastructure that businesses in larger urban areas and city centres may already be able to take for granted.
The way the network is being delivered is also important. We are building the core full fibre infrastructure, but businesses and residents will not be locked into a BT retail solution. They will have freedom of choice to select the broadband service that meets their individual needs, whether their decision is based on budget, features or other requirements. That openness supports competition and gives businesses flexibility.
Infrastructure, however, is only part of the picture. As part of BT’s partnership with Growing Mid Wales, we are also delivering a digital skills accelerator programme for small and medium-sized businesses across Powys and Ceredigion. This six-week virtual programme, led by industry experts, is designed to bring technology to life for SMEs and show the real, practical benefits it can deliver.
This is a crucial part of the work because businesses do not always need a technical lecture. They need to understand what improved connectivity can allow them to do differently. They need to see how digital tools can support their own objectives, whether that is improving efficiency, reaching new customers, developing new services or making better use of staff time.
For Mid Wales, the business park project is an economic development intervention as much as a digital infrastructure project. It is about giving firms the capacity to compete, helping business parks remain attractive places to operate, and strengthening the conditions for future investment.
Richard Anderson speaks about this and more on Unlocking Mid Wales, the Growing Mid Wales podcast. Listen here:
