Get Online Greater Manchester: for social housing residents

More than 260,000 homes in Greater Manchester tenants set to benefit from fibre broadband boost

September 2024

Following the success of the GM Social Housing Digital Inclusion pilot, a first-of-its-kind wayleave agreement has been signed to enhance fibre broadband connectivity for up to 260,000 tenants. This partnership between the Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA), housing providers, and national broadband providers like Virgin Media O2, Nexfibre, Openreach, and Hyperoptic aims to streamline the process, ensuring tenants can access faster broadband without delay. This initiative is crucial for enabling residents, especially those in low-income households, to access essential digital services, healthcare, education, and employment opportunities.

The GM Wayleaves Agreement represents a ground-breaking partnership between housing providers, Internet Service Providers (ISPs), and alternative network operators, setting a new national standard for the installation and delivery of high-speed broadband connectivity. As the first agreement of its kind in the UK, this collaboration between the GM social housing provider group, altnets, and ISPs standardised process to eliminate long-standing barriers to broadband access in social housing, driving innovation and scalability. This pioneering framework serves as a blueprint for wider adoption, enabling more ISPs to join forces, reducing costs, enhancing operational efficiency, and laying the foundation for transformational improvements in social housing infrastructure and resident quality of life.

The agreement reflects a collaborative effort to fix the digital divide, and improve the quality of life for social housing residents. By standardising the wayleave process, the partnership allows internet service providers to quickly start their work, bringing high-speed connectivity to thousands of homes. This model, praised by Mayor of Greater Manchester, Mayor Andy Burnham, is seen as a scalable solution that could be replicated across the UK, ensuring no one is left behind.

Internet service providers who wish to find out more and opt into the GM Wayleave Agreement should contact GMCADigital@greatermanchester-ca.gov.uk

Fix the digital divide: for a digital society

October 2023

Following the pilot, senior leaders from across the UK came together in Manchester to share and discuss the most pressing issues and challenges to fixing the digital divide for UK citizens. Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) brought together representatives from the Scottish and Welsh governments, the largest national telecommunications industry providers, social housing sector, charities, academia and local authorities in the Fix the Digital Divide: for a Digital Society Summit.

During the event, a significant outcome of the pilot was announced - the development of a standardised property wayleave and specification agreement for Greater Manchester’s social housing stock that will speed up industry investment and reduce work for housing organisations. This agreement will also address challenges to delivering internet connectivity to homes and simplify access issues in relation to the practical and costly delivery to social housing homes.

Watch both sessions of the event below.

Fixing the Digital Divide: for a digital society - event recording part 1

Fixing the Digital Divide: for a digital society - event recording part 2

Download the Fixing the Digital Divide: for a digital society event slides (PDF, 9.00MB)

Results of the pilot

September 2023

The University of Liverpool was commissioned by GMCA to undertake an observational and reflective study of the social housing digital pilot. Led by Professor Simeon Yates, the aims of the
research project were to undertake the following:

1. Initial assessment of digital access, skills, and community support for each area, including new survey data and administrative data
2. Qualitative exploration of impacts of digital exclusion in target communities and observational and ethnographic documentation of the programme set-up and implementation in each target area
3. Quantitative assessment of the uptake of the programme and demographics of households
4. Qualitative examination of household and community experience of programme participation
5. Qualitative and quantitative assessment of digital exclusion factors in each area

Read the research report from the Greater Manchester digital inclusion pilot for social housing residents (external website)

What does this mean for our people?

Watch this video from Wythenshawe Community Housing Group and Virgin Media, which gives insight into the impact the pilot has had on people across Greater Manchester.

The new first of its kind pilot is providing a sustainable solution to getting social housing residents across Greater Manchester online and benefitting from the digital world

November 2022

The pilot brings together, for the first time, five of the UK’s largest internet service providers, collaborating with the public and housing sector to tackle the challenges of digital exclusion, faced by social housing residents. Around 260,000 of Greater Manchester residents live in a social housing setting and we estimate that up to 60% face levels of digital exclusion.

Five internet service providers and five social housing providers will work in partnership to provide more accessible offers for customers, such as discounted and more flexible rates for high-speed internet. Those involved include:

• Wythenshawe Community Housing Group (external website) and Virgin Media O2 (external website)
• Stockport Homes and BT/Openreach
• Bolton at Home and Hyperoptic
• Southway Housing Trust (external website) and Vodafone
• Wigan Council and TalkTalk/Freedom Fibre

Residents participating in the pilot will also be able to benefit from digital skills training to support them to build their skills and confidence online. If you're a resident with one of the above social housing providers, please contact your provider directly for further information.

Greater Manchester is stepping up its response to the cost-of-living crisis affecting residents, with leaders announcing a new range of support measures and a new drive to coordinate efforts across the city-region, this new pilot will support these efforts along with tackling the digital divide in Greater Manchester.

The pilot was formally launched at Connected Britain 2022 (external website), by Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham.

Find out more on research sharing sessions for the pilot taking place throughout late 2022 and early 2023.