Free Wi-Fi on its way to Stratford town centre
The system, which will cost £50,000 to install, is set to go live in time for the Christmas Lights switch on, on 26 November.
BID Manager Karen Wild said: “Such a scheme will bring obvious positives to the many thousands of people who visit our town whether it's on business, as part of a leisure break or on a shopping trip. But the service will also be a boost to shops and businesses in Stratford as it will provide information on those using the WiFi, allowing traders to see key statistics including how long people stay in town and how often they visit.
“It will also allow Stratforward to message users about various upcoming events and promotions and keep visitors up to date with all the latest information. These will be scheduled to make sure users aren't bombarded with information and they will have the option of opting out of the service.
“It’s certainly going to put Stratford ahead of many towns, very few have this coverage.”
Warwickshire County Council is working with partners across the county to roll out free WiFi across the county’s main town centres, but Stratford will be one of the first, following Rugby which had its system turned on in time for the start of the Rugby World Cup.
Cllr Izzi Seccombe, Leader of Warwickshire County Council and Portfolio Holder for Economic Growth, added: "The introduction of free and fast public access WiFi is about equipping our town centres with the technology infrastructure for the future.
“The way we use our town centres is changing and we recognise that visitors to the town centre, be they shoppers, businesses or service users, want to browse the internet, use email and social media whilst they are going about their business.
“By embracing this trend we can help to enhance the visitor experience to our town centres and hope that they will want to spend longer there, making our town centres more vibrant and economically viable."
The system, which has been given the backing of town centre businesses, will be installed by Midlands-based Elephant WiFi who worked to get the free WiFi system up and running in Rugby.
