Well done on your Wi-Fi Mansfield

Maybe I am just full of Christmas cheer, but I wanted to write another positive blog post this week and congratulate Mansfield's Business Improvement District (BID) organisation on a job well done.

I spoke to its manager, Sarah Nelson, back in November about a new project BID was embarking on to crowd source funding for a public Wi-Fi network across the Nottinghamshire town.

Even at that early stage the group had already secured 18 pledges and £10,000 in government funding, but BID still had some way to go to reach the £38,000 target to get the project moving, setting itself a deadline of May 2013 to have raised the cash.

When I opened my email this morning I was delighted to see that just one month later the goal has been smashed and Mansfield has all the money it needs to bring free public Wi-Fi access to the residents and businesses of the town.

The statement said Wi-Fi equipment could be deployed early in the New Year, with the service going live as soon as spring 2013.

Congratulations Mansfield! This new connectivity will benefit the area greatly and I hope more towns and cities follow your lead and bring free Wi-Fi to their workers and residents.