In short
A leased line for the public sector gives council offices, depots, libraries and community buildings dedicated, symmetrical internet that holds up under load. BTnet adds BT's SLA with service credits, static IPv4 addresses for secure remote access, resilience options for critical sites and clear contract terms that help with budgeting and procurement.
Get a quote for BTnet for the public sector
Tell us roughly how many users or sites you have and we will reply by email with options and a quote.
Connectivity for public sector sites
Public sector organisations rarely have one kind of building. A council might run a civic centre, a contact centre, depots, libraries, leisure facilities and community hubs, each with different users and different hours. Most now depend on cloud systems, video meetings, hosted phones and remote access for staff who split their week between home and office.
The main office usually carries the heaviest load: hundreds of staff on cloud apps and video, a contact centre handling resident calls, and systems that other sites connect to. Smaller sites still need a dependable connection, because a library without internet cannot offer public computers or Wi-Fi, and a depot without it cannot dispatch work.
A BTnet leased line gives each site its own dedicated, uncontended connection with the same speed in both directions, port speeds from 2Mbps to 10Gbps, static IPv4 addresses as standard and no fair usage policy, as BT describes the service. See what a BT leased line is.
Public sector sites at a glance
| Site type | What the connection carries | BTnet points to plan |
|---|---|---|
| Main office or civic centre | Cloud apps, video, hosted phones, contact centre, VPN hub | Higher speed on a bearer with headroom; resilient BTnet |
| Depot or operational site | Job dispatch, vehicle and stock systems, CCTV | Upload for cameras; survey and construction work on outlying sites |
| Library or community hub | Staff systems, public computers, public Wi-Fi | Separate public network; responsibility for guest Wi-Fi use |
| Leisure or visitor site | Bookings, payments, CCTV, visitor Wi-Fi | Card payment security planned separately; guest Wi-Fi |
| Data centre or hosting site | Hosted services, central systems | BTnet on a data centre access bearer; you arrange the cross-connect with the data centre |
Each site takes its own BTnet service, so you can match speed, plan and resilience to what each building does rather than buying the same thing everywhere. See multi-site leased lines.
Not sure which plan fits? Ask us
Tell us what you need and we will recommend the right plan for your organisation, with a quote.
Static IPs, VPNs and remote access
Static IPv4 addresses are included with BTnet as standard. For a public body that means:
- Site-to-site VPNs between firewalls at each building, using known addresses
- Remote access for staff working from home or in the field, through a VPN gateway on a fixed address
- Allow-listing by suppliers and other organisations that accept traffic from known addresses
- Hosted services reachable on a stable address
Under BT's terms the IP addresses BT provides stay BT's, cannot be transferred and end when the service ends, so plan ahead before moving a site or changing services. Organisations with their own Provider Independent Resources can discuss using them, with the registration duties that come with them. See static IP addresses on BTnet.
Resilience for public services
Some services cannot stop because a line has failed: the contact centre, emergency planning, social care teams, payments and the systems other sites rely on. BT offers three resilience options for BTnet:
| Option | How it works | Often suits |
|---|---|---|
| Failover | A standby BTnet line that takes traffic if the primary fails | Main offices where the second line should mirror the first |
| Load balancing | Two lines working together; if one fails, traffic can flow over the other, subject to capacity | Busy sites that want to use both lines day to day |
| Back-up | A lower-speed second line for the essentials | Smaller sites where a cheaper second line is enough |
BT's terms say which option you can have depends on your configuration, routing protocol, speed and what is available at the site. Route separation and power are questions for the survey, and BT's terms make you responsible for secure, continuous power, including back-up power. On a resilient service, BT's availability service credits are applied to the charges at the site affected.
Is BTnet for the public sector the right fit for you?
We will check it against your systems and requirements and recommend the right option.
Public Wi-Fi in libraries and community buildings
Free Wi-Fi is part of what many libraries and community buildings offer. On BTnet, BTnet Wi-Fi uses Meraki access points (up to five per service) and supports a separate guest network, so the public do not share the network your staff use.
Under BT's terms you are responsible for how your Wi-Fi and guest Wi-Fi are used, including setting and securing passwords and any misuse under BT's acceptable use policy. If you take BTnet Security, its policy should be active across both your staff and guest networks. BT also applies Cleanfeed filtering to BTnet as standard, which blocks pages on the Internet Watch Foundation's list, but most public bodies will want their own filtering and acceptable use terms for public Wi-Fi as well.
Payments at public sector sites
Councils and other public bodies take payments at receptions, leisure centres, car parks and visitor sites. A leased line carries that traffic, but it does not make card payments secure by itself.
Card payment security, including the card industry's PCI DSS standard, is set up through your payments provider and your IT team's own network controls, such as keeping payment devices on their own network segment. Tell us how payments are taken at each site when you ask for a quote, and we can plan the connection around it.
Procurement, budgets and contract terms
We do not claim a place on any procurement framework or supplier list. Your organisation will have its own procurement rules, and we can work with the route you are using. What we can do is give you clear information about BTnet and BT's current terms, in plain words, so you can assess it properly and plan budgets:
- Minimum Term: set in the order; after it ends, the service carries on until either side ends it. See BTnet contract terms.
- Ending the service: either side can end it on 30 days' notice once the service is live; termination charges then apply, set in BT's terms by the type and size of bearer.
- Cancellation charges: if an order is cancelled before the service goes live, charges set by bearer type apply, per bearer on resilient services.
- Billing start: BT may invoice from the Operational Service Date, even if services that depend on BTnet are not ready yet.
- Changes to BT's terms: BT can amend its terms; where a change is materially to your detriment, BT's terms give you a window to end the affected service without charges.
- Service levels: BT's availability, delivery and latency service levels and how service credits are claimed. See the BTnet SLA.
Our questions to ask before you order checklist is a useful starting point for a specification.
Installing at public buildings
Public buildings range from modern offices to older civic buildings and remote depots. BT surveys each site before setting a committed date, and BT's help pages say installation can take up to 70 working days, depending on the survey. Points to plan:
- Extra engineering to reach a site is covered by excess construction charges; you can agree a limit in the order, and BT only invoices what is actually incurred.
- Where you do not own or control the building or land, for example a shared or leased site, you need the owner's or landlord's consent, often through a wayleave agreement.
- BT's terms ask for site access in Business Hours (08:00 to 17:00) unless the order agrees otherwise, plus a suitable space, power supply and cable routes for the equipment. See preparing your site.
Dates are BT's and are confirmed after survey. See the BTnet installation process for each step.
How Forever Communications helps public sector organisations
Forever Communications is an Authorised Supplier for BT, and we supply BTnet to public sector organisations. We can:
- Review your sites and size speed, bearer and plan for each one
- Set out resilience options for the sites that run critical services
- Explain BT's terms in plain words for your procurement and budget papers
- Prepare a written quote covering one site or many
- Help with survey, wayleave and site preparation questions as each order moves through installation
Pricing depends on the sites, speeds, plans and options, so ask us for a quote. Contact us with a list of sites and what each one does.
Why buy BTnet from Forever Communications
Forever Communications is part of Forever Group and an Authorised Supplier for BT. We supply BTnet, BT's dedicated leased line internet service, to businesses, schools, charities and public sector organisations, and we help with each step from first enquiry to go-live.
- The right BTnet option for you: we help you choose a speed, bearer, router and resilience option that fits how your sites actually work, from BTnet plans to BTnet speeds
- A clear quote: BTnet is priced per site, so we check availability at your address and set out what is included; see leased line cost
- Installation managed with you: we explain the survey, any wayleave or construction steps and the installation process, and keep you updated on progress
- Connected services in one conversation: phones with BT Cloud Voice, Wi-Fi, firewalls and backup lines, so the whole set-up is planned together
- Help after go-live: we can help with faults, changes and upgrades, with the support arrangements confirmed in your quote
BTnet is a business service. Service levels, lead times and features are BT's and are confirmed at order.
Frequently asked questions
Can councils buy BTnet from Forever Communications?
Yes, subject to your own procurement rules. We do not claim framework places, but we can give you clear product information and BT's terms in plain words, and prepare a written quote for one site or many.
Is a leased line suitable for a library or community hub?
Yes, where staff systems, public computers and public Wi-Fi all share the connection. BTnet Wi-Fi supports a separate guest network, and you remain responsible for how it is used under BT's terms.
Can a council take card payments at a site with BTnet?
Yes, but the line does not make payments secure by itself. Card payment security, including PCI DSS, is handled through your payments provider and your own network controls, so tell us how each site takes payments.
What happens if a council site's line fails?
Faults are handled under BT's support terms, and BT's availability service level provides for service credits on qualifying incidents. For critical sites, BTnet resilience options add a second line for failover, load balancing or back-up.
Do public sector sites get static IP addresses?
Yes. Static IPv4 addresses are a standard part of BTnet, which helps with site-to-site VPNs, remote access and supplier allow-listing.
Still have a question about BTnet for the public sector?
Ask us and a member of our team will reply by email.