NorMAN is a high-speed network connecting the five Universities and 24 FE and 6th-form colleges in the North East of England. As well as providing the connectivity to the academic network, SuperJANET, and to the Internet, NorMAN aids collaborative working within the region. It is able to support the use of video-conferencing and applications
sharing between two or more partners, and delivers much better quality of service than has previously been possible.

Applications can also be developed to promote the greater use of open and distance learning with reduced communications costs. The quality of this network is also complements the developments in e-Science and GRID computing that are likely to transform research in the next few years.