Openreach to light up 312,000 rural UK premises in Project Gigabit next phase

The UK government has announced up to £800m in government investment will be made available to modernise broadband infrastructure in rural areas of England, Scotland and Wales.

The £5bn Project Gigabit programme was introduced in 2021 with the aim of accelerating the UK’s recovery from Covid-19; fire up high-growth sectors such as tech and the creative industries; and level up the country, spreading wealth and creating jobs across the country.

On its launch, the previous government said it would prioritise areas with slow connections that would otherwise be left behind in commercial broadband companies’ plans and give rural communities access to the fastest internet on the market, helping to grow the economy.

Project Gigabit specifically targets places typically regarded as too expensive for commercial providers to reach in their build and which would otherwise be left behind with poor digital infrastructure. It will help meet the growing demand for reliable connectivity, stimulating local rural economies and reducing regional disparities by enabling remote working and attracting new businesses.  

Explaining why it was ramping up the broadband access scheme, the UK government said hundreds of thousands of rural homes and businesses were still struggling to fulfil basic online tasks due to outdated infrastructure, making it necessary to obtain major internet speed upgrades and narrow the existing digital divide.

The new deal is said to represent one of the biggest milestones in the roll-out of Project Gigabit and will see Openreach, the UK’s leading broadband provider, deliver access to gigabit-capable broadband to around 312,000 homes and businesses across the nation. Residents and businesses in remote areas will gain access to gigabit connectivity to help deliver improved productivity as part of the government’s mission to kickstart economic growth.

Project Gigabit is a British infrastructure success story, said Clive Selley, CEO of Openreach. “Research shows that full-fibre provides a host of economic, social and environmental benefits – and I believe we’re the best in the business at delivering it,” he said.

“I’m proud we’ve been chosen, through a fiercely competitive process, and we’re already cracking on with the job. Our network already reaches more than 15 million urban and rural premises and, wherever we build, we bring the widest choice of providers for customers. I’m confident we can reach as many as 30 million homes by the end of the decade if the conditions remain supportive.”

The new programme also marks the first time Wales, the nation with the lowest percentage of gigabit coverage, will benefit from Project Gigabit. Data from Think Broadband shows Wales lags behind all other nations in Great Britain, with only 74% of its landmass covered by gigabit-capable connection. This is compares with 84% in England, 78% in Scotland and 95% in Northern Ireland.

Around £170m of the new development is being made available to deliver digital infrastructure fit for the future and ensure rural businesses can thrive in the Principality aiming to benefit around 70,000 hard-to-reach Welsh homes and businesses. It will apply to some of the most remote parts of the country from the South Wales Valleys to the Llyn Peninsula 

“Within weeks of taking office, we have already taken the steps to begin providing faster broadband to tens of thousands of people across Wales. The signing of this major contract with Openreach ensures we are on track to achieve full gigabit coverage by 2030,” said UK secretary of state for Science, Innovation and Technology, Peter Kyle.

“Robust digital infrastructure is vital for competitiveness, productivity and growth, and we are committed to delivering for hundreds of thousands of homes and businesses, focusing particularly on areas that have been left behind, such as Wales.”

The secretary of state for Wales, Jo Stevens, added: “We have too many people, especially in the more remote areas of Wales, who can’t properly access the online world, and I’m pleased that thanks to this substantial investment from the UK government, work on fixing that is starting now.”