Connexin completes ‘significant’ first stage of Project Gigabit contract

Having begun the year with the launch of an all-in-one business broadband service designed specifically for small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Hull, smart technology and digital provider Connexin is ending 2024 with the completion of the first stage of its contract for the provision by 2025 of hyperfast broadband to over 34,000 rural homes in Nottinghamshire and West Lincolnshire, under the UK’s Project Gigabit scheme.

The £5bn Project Gigabit initiative was introduced in 2021, with the aim of accelerating the UK’s recovery from Covid-19 and building a broadband infrastructure that would achieve full national gigabit coverage by 2030, in particular enabling hard-to-reach communities hitherto underserved with fast, reliable broadband. Its aims include boosting high-growth sectors such as tech and the creative industries, as well as levelling up the country, spreading wealth and creating jobs.

On its launch, the previous UK government said the scheme 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. The new Labour administration has reconfirmed the original objectives.

By April 2024, more than £1.3bn had already been invested in Project Gigabit contracts, resulting in nearly 82% of properties across the UK having access to gigabit broadband, up from just 7% at the same time five years ago.

This investment saw more than a million rural homes, businesses and public buildings upgraded to gigabit-capable networks.

Founded in Hull in 2006, Connexin claims to have established itself as a market leader in the provision of end-to-end infrastructure services, and announced a new broadband network in September 2021, with the aim of disrupting the existing monopoly by offering residents and businesses freedom of choice when selecting a fibre broadband provider.

A £58m contract was awarded to Connexin in January 2024 by the UK government, and as part of the contract, over 34,000 rural properties in hard-to-reach areas such as Kirkby-in-Ashfield, Sutton-in-Ashfield, Annesley, Wragby and Market Rasen, will undergo a major digital upgrade with the introduction of Connexin’s full-fibre to the premise (FTTP) broadband infrastructure.

Connexin has worked closely with the government, Nottinghamshire County Council, Lincolnshire County Council and European real estate investment manager Patrizia to complete stage one of the project on time and under budget, and will now move onto the build stage, which will see the first premises connected by early 2025.

“As a company driven to improve lives through digital innovation, Connexin is delighted to be working with [the UK’s Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, and executive agency Building Digital UK] on bringing Ultrafast Connectivity to these hard-to-reach areas,” said Connexin CEO Furqan Alamgir.

“This fibre network will not only offer significantly faster broadband speeds, but will serve as a backbone for many other services to truly digitally enable rural Nottinghamshire and West Lincolnshire.”