Ask4 News

ask4 Increase Engineering Headcount

ask4, the UK’s fastest student broadband provider has significantly increased its engineering head count to cope with the amount of new site installations, this summer. The highly successful Sheffield based telecommunications company has secured contracts to supply broadband and other IT value added services to over 30 new student accommodation sites across the country. This means they will gain supply to over 7,000 more student bedrooms, increasing their total UK supply to over 50,000. To enable this to happen and to sustain their excellent customer service reputation, they have recruited 6 more installation engineers into the team.

ask4 promote internally

ask4 are proud to announce Andrew Wardlaw has been promoted to the Client Relations team from their 1st line Technical Support helpdesk.

Due to continued expansion, the company has recently had a positive stream of internal promotions from staff working in this department, where they gain a good grounding and understanding of the ask4 business ethos and services. Ask4 aims to nurture and develop their staff and is a young, innovative, vibrant company with strong values on staff retention and seeks to promote internally wherever possible. Half of the Operational Management team at ask4 have initially worked on 1st line Technical Support.

ask4 student internet strengthens its relationship with "Fresh Student Living"

ask4, leading independent supplier of broadband Internet services to student accommodation across the UK has strengthened its relationship with “Fresh Student Living” (formerly Carlton North Wales Ltd) - Watkin Jones’ chosen student management company. In addition to currently supplying over 1,000 students their broadband packages and other associated IT services at their sites in Wolverhampton, Loughborough, Liverpool and Sheffield, they now supply a further 1,500 students in their new accommodation buildings in Ipswich, Kingston-upon-Thames, Chester and Newcastle.

Yvonne Jones, Associate Director at Fresh Student Living said,

“I am pleased with how ask4 have worked with us in the past, the reliability of their services and customer support is second to none and so strengthening our relationship with our extended portfolio was an obvious choice”.

Jonathon Hudson, chairman at ask4, said: “We are delighted Fresh Student Living has chosen our services to supply their new accommodation. Strengthening the partnership like this one with Fresh proves our position as the UK’s fastest and most reliable provider of Broadband internet services to student accommodation.”

Carlton (North Wales) Ltd rebranded their successful student management company as Fresh Student Living - http://www.freshstudentliving.co.uk/ in March. It was designed to give a ‘fresh’ look using zesty green and yellow colors in order and bring it in line with their offering rather than the corporate sounding of Carlton North Wales Ltd.

UNIPOL chooses ask4 to improve service

Unipol the organisation that sets the standards for UK student accommodation has chosen Sheffield based telecommunications firm ask4 as its supplier of broadband to its own accommodation in Leeds.

Unipol works nationally to improve the standards of student accommodation, providing the benchmarks to which all student buildings are set to. It provides purpose-converted, high quality housing designed with the particular needs of student tenants in mind.

ask4 now provide broadband services to more than 900 beds across Unipol’s portfolio of housing.

Jonathan Hudson, chairman of ask4, said: “To be chosen by Unipol to supply the internet is of great significance and we are delighted to be working in partnership with a company which sets out to improve the standards of accommodation for University students throughout the country. We are committed to providing students with the best possible internet service, which goes hand in hand with Unipol’s objectives.”

ask4’s fibre optic broadband package includes a 2mb internet service with upgrade options available up to 50Mb/s with all levels of service having no download limits.

For more information please contact Sophie Broughton – Jones, Business Development Co-ordinator:
0844 555 5049 or sbjones@ask4.com.

ask4 Connects to Cancer Charity

A local cancer charity is seeing the benefits of an innovative fundraising scheme set up by a leading Sheffield based telecommunications company.

ask4 continues to support Weston Park Hospital Cancer Charity after raising money connecting students across the UK to their high speed internet service.

The company chose to support the charity after Chairman Jonathan Hudson became a patron following his own battle with the disease. 50 pence was donated to Weston Park Hospital Cancer Charity from each Ethernet cable sold to students across the country moving in to halls of residence where their Internet connection is supplied by ask4. This cable allows students to connect quickly and simply to gain high speed internet by plugging it in their computers and to their data port in their rooms.

Jonathon said: “Weston Park Hospital Cancer Charity is particularly close to my heart so I felt this would be a great way of raising funds for a fantastic cause and driving our fundraising initiatives for the charity forward. As our charity of the year, we are always looking for new and innovative ways to help them out.

“As one of only three dedicated cancer hospitals, people come to Weston Park from all over the country to receive cancer treatment. This means that the money raised through the charity is fundamental to ensuring that the hospital can continue this world-class care”.

A privately owned company with offices in Sheffield, ask4 is a leading supplier of telecommunications services to student accommodation throughout the UK. The company’s fibre optic broadband package includes speeds currently up to 50Mb/s with all levels of service having no download limits.

Catherine Newman, senior fundraiser at Weston Park Hospital Cancer Charity, said: “Jonathan has had first hand experience of how the charity can help patients and he was an ideal person to come on board as a patron.

“We are once again extremely grateful for ask4’s continued support and this initiative has proved an extremely successful way of raising funds for us”.

Livewire internet firms join forces

Two pioneering Sheffield-based Broadband suppliers, that lead their specialist fields, are joining forces to boost services for business.

Milton Street-based student services specialist Ask4 has scored a major coup by acquiring Quadrant Business Centre-based W2, which provides high quality internet and ICT services to small and medium-sized companies, mainly based in business incubators and parks. Ask4 had previously sought to buy W2, but approaches came to naught.

"We heard last week that W2 had gone in to administration and we thought we'd have a look at it," says Ask4's managing director, Jonathan Hudson.

"We had to work pretty quickly to make sure the deal was done. We are keeping on the staff and will be going round all W2's customers over the next fortnight, explaining how we will look after them.

"W2 is a natural fit into our business subsidiary, Ask4 Business. The acquisition brings new services to the table and a profitable client base. We wanted to make sure that a local company still supported the local client base."

Ask4 started out in 2000, providing Internet services to Sheffield's West1 apartments and went on to connect the Wards' Brewery development.

Its major growth came after targeting the burgeoning number of new student apartments springing up in Sheffield and other parts of the country and it now provides broadband services to 50,000 students in flats and houses in cities that include Sheffield, London, Birmingham and Nottingham.

The company has its own fibre optic cable network, which supplies customers as far away as Dundee, Cardiff and London, and installed a fibre optic ring around the centre of Sheffield as part of the completion of the inner city ring road.

Ask4 has provided services to businesses for a number of years and has received an increasing number of approaches from the corporate sector recently, says Jonathan Hudson.

Acquiring W2 – formerly known as the Wired Workplace – gives Ask4 a platform on which it can broaden its services for business

W2 is Sheffield Chamber of Commerce's preferred supplier for IT and telecoms and Ask4 had to move rapidly to snap up the business after it was put into administration.

The deal includes W2's hi-tech data centre in Sheffield, which was designed to house up to 600 servers, capable of storing 300 terabytes of data – enough information to fill almost a third of a million encyclopaedias.

- By Bob Rae

Red Devil Skydive for Weston Park Hospital Cancer Charity

Help us raise vital funds by making an exhilarating parachute jump for your local cancer hospital.

Weston Park Hospital Cancer Charity have teamed up with Click and Jump to offer you the exciting opportunity to skydive with the British Army’s Parachute Regiments Freefall Team – the one and only Red Devils!

For more information about dates and venues, please call Lyndsey on 0114 226 5751 or email Lyndsey Raynor.

Registered Charity No: 1039885

Get Involved

Join ask4's principal nominated charity, Weston Park Cancer Hospital, in their fight against Cancer here in Sheffield

Did you know?

Weston Park Hospital in Sheffield is 1 of only 3 dedicated Cancer hospitals in the UK

Our Cancer hospital is a centre of excellence and a world leader in Cancer Research

All funds raised by our Cancer Charity support research, improve treatments and care for people living with cancer

Join our Think Pink Sponsored Walk, Sheffield

Sunday 5th October 2008

Walk 6/12km & raise funds to support research improve treatments and care for women with cancer.

Fire and Ice Fashion Show Ponds Forge, Sheffield

Saturday 22nd November 2008

Buy a ticket for the Fashion Show or volunteer your time to help with our fundraising event

Further Details

If you want to get involved and support research, treatment and care for people living with cancer please get in touch. Call 0114 226 5370 or check out our website at www.wphcancercharity.org.uk

Weston Park Hospital Cancer Charity; Registered Number: 1039885

Read more about ask4 and Weston Park Hospital at ask4forgivness

ask4 director scoops Young Gun award

A company director from Sheffield is celebrating having been voted as one of most outstanding young entrepreneurs in the UK.

ask4’s Jonathan Burrows has beaten off stiff competition and has been crowned as one of 30 hot shot Young Guns 2008 by Growing Business magazine.

The Young Guns celebrate and recognise the UK’s best young entrepreneurs and the companies they run. Winners of the prestigious accolade must meet a high standard of criteria in order to be considered a Young Gun.

Jonathan, aged 26 from Fulwood, attended the Young Guns lunch held at Kensington Roof Gardens in London where he met his fellow Young Guns. He said: "I am extremely pleased to have been selected as a 2008 Young Gun.

"Whilst I try not to take these things too seriously, I think it's recognition of how we have developed ask4 over the past couple of years and reflects the rate of growth we have achieved and of the current trajectory the business.

"Meeting the other young entrepreneurs at the Young Guns lunch in London was very useful and hopefully it has opened a number of doors for the future."

Ask4 Managing Director Jonathan Hudson nominated Jonathan for the award. He said: "Jonathan is a very motivated and creative young businessman and is a driving force for ask4.

"This accolade indicates the respect he has from his fellow peers and is a great reflection of his hard work and dedication to the company."

Telecommunications supplier ask4 Matt!

The Sheffield-based UK leading supplier of telecommunications services to the student accommodation sector have strengthened its senior management team.

ask4 has appointed Matt Eley as Operations Director to the rapidly expanding company, located on Milton Street.

Nottingham born Matt has been recruited to assist the in the transition into a larger organisation, both internally and externally, as well as to build on the success of the company’s core student market.

Matt, aged 28, gained a business degree from Sheffield Hallam University in 2002 and previously worked for one of ask4’s largest clients, Liberty Living as Operations Manager. Football fan Matt plays for two teams in Sheffield and enjoys running and keeping fit.

Said Matt: "Having worked with ask4 as a client myself over the previous four years, I had a very good insight into the company. My career has always been focussed on the niche student accommodation sector and I have developed key partnerships with many universities."

"I join ask4 at an important growth juncture with very exciting times ahead. I hope to help them during this period of growth and maintain our status as the market leading student ISP."

Jonathan Hudson, Managing Director of ask4, said: "Matt brings with him a great understanding of how our clients operate and has many contacts within the student accommodation arena."

"Matt has already demonstrated his wide range of skills by redeveloping our website and gaining a number of new contracts. "

"We have recently achieved a 70 per cent growth in business in the past year and we are delighted to have Matt on board at such a key period for the company."

ask4 support local Cancer Charity

We are pleased to announce that ask4 is supporting Weston Park Cancer Charity.

Last year Managing Director Jonathan Hudson was diagnosed with Cancer and due to the help and support given to him and his family by Weston Park Cancer Hospital we have become involved in supporting the Charity. Jonathan Hudson has become a Patron of the Charity and is working with the team to raise the profile and assist in the management.

"We have already made a cash donation and are working with our Branding Company GDA Design of Sheffield to provide them with a new look and website. This is a long term commitment from ask4 and we are very lucky to have such a superb Cancer Hospital on our doorstep. If you would like to help support or volunteer then please help!" comments Jonathan Hudson.

ask4’s Sheffield success story

Yorkshire based telecommunications supplier ask4 is celebrating a 70 per cent growth in business in the last year.

A privately owned company with offices in Sheffield, ask4 is the UK’s leading supplier of telecommunications services to the student accommodation sector and also offers the fastest residential broadband package in the UK.

The educational sector is a key driver for ask4 and in the past 12 months the company has increased its student client base from 20,000 to 34,000 and have also strengthened staffing levels to build a 38 strong team based at Milton Street in the city.

Jonathan Hudson, Managing Director of ask4 said: “We have a great team and our recent significant growth is a testament to them. We are always looking at developing the business further and have recently won a number of key tenders and we are currently negotiating a number of new contracts with leading universities as well as residential sites.

"We are very proud of our Sheffield roots and it’s fantastic to have achieved acclaim nationally as well as in our home city."

The company was formed in 2000 to provide Internet access to Multiple Tenanted Unit developments in the UK and in 2005 ask4 merged with Horizon Telecommunications, one of the leading providers of Internet access services to the student accommodation market, forming a company with unrivalled technology and support service, and excellent market experience, clients and contacts.

The company supplies eight out of the top ten suppliers of private student accommodation throughout the city as well providing the fastest residential broadband to luxury residential sites including Wards Brewery, West One, Jet Centro and Queens Tower.

Jonathan added: “We are delighted that the company has achieved significant growth in the past year. ask4’s sole focus is delivering excellent Internet Services and we are constantly updating our product portfolio and finding novel ways to add value to our clients’ sites.”

ask4 puts a fibre ring around Sheffield

Working with H20 Networks, we are installing our first fibre ring to deliver super fast internet services and will be rolling out to other cities next year. Jonathan Burrows commented "Our Dark Fibre ring will allow us to deliver Internet and video content at much greater speeds and gives us greater control over our costs."

We first worked with H20 Networks last year and they installed fibre links between point to point sites and found they could provide cost effective fibre links providing us greater control and flexibility than the links previously supplied by our traditional Telco partners.