Openreach is rallying the residents and businesses on the outskirts of Middleton to support a bid to bring ultrafast, ultra-reliable full-fibre broadband to approximately 120 local properties.
Through the initiative, by leveraging free government broadband vouchers, the community can usher in this cutting-edge technology and start reaping its benefits within the next 12-18 months.
If sufficient participation is gathered, these entities will join the ranks of numerous other households and businesses that already enjoy access to full-fibre broadband.
With funding facilitated by the government’s Gigabit Broadband Voucher Scheme and the deployment of innovative engineering methodologies, thousands more remote, rural, and coastal communities are now within the grasp of this ultrafast technology.
Identifying approximately 120 residences and businesses, predominantly situated on the peripheries of the village encompassing Manchester Road, Birch Mill Business Centre, Heywood Old Road, Whittle Lane, and Old Hall Lane, Openreach is urging local residents to take the next step by applying for and pooling together free government Gigabit Vouchers to support the infrastructure development.
Residents can verify their eligibility and pledge their voucher on the Connect My Community website. Utilizing these vouchers at no cost to residents enables Openreach to collaborate with the local community in constructing a customized, co-funded network.
Upon reaching the requisite pledge threshold and validating their vouchers, Openreach engineers will commence the construction process. This endeavour may span 12-18 months, with certain properties being activated before others.
Openreach’s regional engagement manager, Paul Harland, expressed enthusiasm about the initiative, stating, “This is a truly exciting opportunity for residents residing on the outskirts of Middleton to bring the myriad benefits of ultrafast, ultra-reliable full fibre broadband to their community.”
“Our Fibre Community Partnership program has expanded the scope of our Full Fibre build plans to encompass hundreds more communities across the UK potentially. However, extending the network to these more challenging locales remains a formidable task, necessitating collective effort from residents, neighbours, and Openreach alike.”
“We’re committing £15 billion to deploy full fibre broadband to 25 million homes, with over six million of those slated for the most challenging regions of the UK. However, this nationwide upgrade cannot be accomplished in isolation. The invaluable support from the government is pivotal to this endeavour.”
Upon reaching the pledge target for the scheme, residents must ensure the validation of their vouchers with the Government to enable Openreach to initiate construction. As part of the funding conditions, residents are required to subscribe to a full-fibre service from a provider of their choice for a minimum of 12 months once the new network becomes available and confirm their connectivity.
