Over 200k homes and businesses in Southern and Eastern England to receive faster internet

Residents living and operating out of rural Norfolk, Suffolk and Hampshire are in line to receive access to much faster internet connections thanks to Britain's leading independent full-fibre provider, CityFibre and Project Gigabit. Project Gigabit is the British government's £5 billion plan to help provide rapid gigabit-capable broadband to isolated residential areas that are difficult to reach.

The project has ambitions to provide gigabit-capable connections to 85 per cent of Britain by the end of 2025 and the entire nation by 2030.

CityFibre has received £318 million in funding from Project Gigabit in order to provide 218,000 homes in the Southern and Eastern rural areas of England with gigabit-capable connectivity. The full-fibre provider will also be putting forward its own contribution of £170 million to the project.

The new broadband connections will allow the people of Norfolk, Suffolk and Hampshire to enjoy streamed entertainment, carry out online banking, communicate, run a business and make shopping purchases. Also, having better internet accessibility paves the way for further innovation and opportunities, which aligns with the Prime Minister's aim to introduce better-paying jobs so the economy can grow.

Survey work is set to begin imminently, and the first installations will be in by the start of 2024 with live connectivity set to debut by next summer. As soon as the connections go live, residents and businesses located in Portsmouth, Beccles and the Broads will be able to access very fast broadband services with a network that can handle speeds reaching 10Gbps.

The coverage of gigabit accessibility in Britain has reached 76 per cent and is set to provide valuable infrastructure to British people, which will help boost and grow the economy.

Minister for Data and Digital Infrastructure, Sir John Whittingdale, spoke on the importance of the Project Gigabit programme. He stated: "Access to lightning-speed broadband is key to the government's plans for driving economic growth and levelling up communities. This investment of £318 million in government funding is a significant milestone in achieving that mission."

CEO of CityFibre, Greg Mesch touched on providing strong broadband connections to the rural areas of Norfolk, Suffolk and Hampshire. He said: "Securing three further Project Gigabit contracts firmly establishes CityFibre as an integral delivery partner to the Government for rural connectivity."

Roughly 62,000 households and businesses in Norfolk will benefit from the £114 million worth of funding from Project Gigabit and £43 million of investment from CityFibre. The locations in Norfolk that will benefit include Horning, Castle Acre and Buxton, whilst an additional 8000 premises within the northwest area of Norfolk will be reviewed by upcoming surveys to decide whether they should be included.

Also, CityFibre is committed to providing work and learning opportunities for the locals in Norfolk through internships, apprenticeships and work experience placements.

Norfolk County-Council Cabinet Member for Corporate Services and Innovation, Cllr Jane James highlighted how valuable it will be for the county to have greater broadband accessibility. She explained: "As a rural county, with numerous small towns and villages, we can often feel left behind with slower internet speeds, but to increase speed and reliability in the network for over 60,000 homes and businesses is a great step."

An announced £100 million of Project Gigabit funding along with CItyFibre investment worth £74 million will allow approximately 80,000 gigabit-capable internet connections to be provided to Suffolk residents, including in hamlets, towns and villages such as Icklingham, Mellis and Ringshall. CityFibre will donate to charities in Suffolk, help connect people, help lonely people plus tackle health inequalities by way of innovative strategies.

Furthermore, community centres in Suffolk will be eligible to receive six months of free internet connectivity thanks to CityFibre.

Leader of Suffolk County Council, Cllr Matthew Hicks, spoke on how the latest investment will aid the county. He pronounced: "Not only will this investment in our digital infrastructure help to keep our residents connected, but, since many of Suffolk's small businesses are operated from households across the county, it is essential for the future of the local economy."

Areas in Hampshire such as Test Valley, Rushmoor and East Hampshire are a few of the places in the county set to benefit from new lightning-quick internet connections thanks to £104 million in investment from Project Gigabit and £54 million in funding from CityFibre. This could lead to 76,000 rural households and businesses having access to much faster broadband.

Additionally, existing work in Hampshire will be supported in order to give protection to biodiversity and stimulate conversation. Grants will be handed to local charities to support rewilding work whilst over 1,000 hours of volunteering work with local environmental groups will be offered to supply chain staff as well as CityFibre.

Leader of Hampshire County Council, Councillor Rob Humby, expressed his delight at securing greater broadband access to the county's rural places. He said: "It is fantastic that residents, businesses and communities across rural Hampshire will benefit from this government investment to deliver reliable, high-speed full-fibre broadband to areas that are not commercially viable. I am very proud of our role in championing the benefits of gigabit broadband connections to rural communities."

Elsewhere, the British government has put forward £150 million in investment towards the Wireless Infrastructure Strategy, which will ideally see standalone 5G accessible to all populated locations in the nation by 2030. Also, it will contribute to the development of 6G, making Britain a hub for 6G development whilst the nation's digital connectivity levels will be significantly boosted as a result.