'We want to work with communities' - Boss of firm putting up telegraph poles in Trafford

The man leading a company's roll-out full-fibre broadband across Trafford has moved to allay fears of people concerned about the sudden appearance of telegraph poles across the borough. Gareth Cornelius is regional head for the Manchester area for BRSK Ltd and says that currently only five per cent of the households in the borough have access to the high-speed service.

Mr Cornelius has told the Local Democracy Reporting Service that wherever possible the company accesses Openreach infrastructure underground under Ofcom regulations. However, he said there are situations in certain areas where no underground connection is viable, resulting in the need for new telegraph poles.

As reported by the LDRS earlier this month, telegraph poles have sprung up in Sale, prompting complaints from some residents. The sudden appearance of the poles sparked a fierce debate on Facebook after someone posted anonymously saying they arrived home to find 'this monstrosity right outside our [their] house'.

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"Apparently they have the right to install these without consultation with residents, regardless of the true need for ultrafast fibre broadband, aesthetic damage to the area or property value," they wrote. "Have lodged a strong complaint, for what it's worth, but if this is a wider problem for Sale, perhaps it's one for our MP."

Some of the replies were dismissive of the original poster's complaints. One said: "If they have the right to install these without consultation, then you are wasting your time complaining. They are virtually every road anyway."

Another said: "You'll have brilliant broadband speed though to take your mind off it."