Original article Total Telecom:Read More
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Openreach has begun delivering full fibre broadband to homes and in some of the hardest to reach locations in the UK
The rollout brings gigabit connectivity to areas that have been overlooked by commercial broadband investment, including villages such as Lacock and Broad Hinton in Wiltshire, Dane End in Hertfordshire, Castle Caereinion and Llanwrin in Powys, and Meeth in Devon.
The upgrades form part of Openreach’s Project Gigabit contracts to reach 290,000 hard-to-serve properties that would otherwise not have been commercially viable.
In Meeth, one of the first communities to go live, the arrival of fibre has already started to reshape local businesses. Mike Tunnicliffe, landlord of The Bull and Dragon pub, says the impact is huge: “Just because we’re in the middle of nowhere, doesn’t mean we’re disconnected anymore. As Chair of the Parish Council, I know that having connectivity coming into the village is going to allow businesses and the community to grow. There’s a lot of families that home school and it’s going to make their lives a lot easier as well.”
The upgrades come amid growing evidence of the wider economic potential of nationwide gigabit access. Analysis by the Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR) suggests that fibre adoption could boost UK GDP by £66 billion by 2029, with the potential to bring more than 600,000 people back into the workforce and enable over 1 million to work remotely.
“I’m delighted to see the first premises successfully connected thanks to this landmark contract with Openreach, which will see some 290,000 homes and businesses connected in some of the hardest-to-reach places in the UK,” said Telecoms Minister Sir Chris Bryant.
“Poor connectivity has kept rural communities back for too long, but through Project Gigabit we’re removing barriers to opportunity and bringing fast, reliable broadband to homes and businesses that need it most,” he continued.
Alongside the government backed rollout, Openreach’s commercial fibre deployment continues to accelerate. The company is now passing over 70,000 new premises a week, with its network footprint reaching 18 million homes and businesses.
Openreach aims to expand to 25 million by the end of 2026, and up to 30 million by the end of the decade.
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