Openreach is calling upon Samlesbury’s residents and businesses to support an initiative aimed at bringing ultrafast, highly reliable full fibre broadband to the area. Failure to apply for free Government broadband vouchers may cause the community to miss out on a unique opportunity for a full fibre upgrade that promises faster speeds and increased reliability.
Samlesbury could join the ranks of over 36,000 homes and businesses in South Ribble that already benefit from access to full fibre broadband if enough residents participate.
The funding provided through the Government’s Gigabit Broadband Voucher Scheme, coupled with the deployment of advanced broadband signal boosting technology, has made it possible for numerous remote rural communities, including Samlesbury, to access ultrafast broadband.
Openreach has identified Samlesbury as a candidate for Full Fibre broadband and is encouraging locals to apply for and pool together free Government Gigabit Vouchers to support the expansion.
Residents can determine their eligibility and pledge their vouchers on the Connect My Community website. These vouchers, which do not cost residents anything, enable Openreach to collaborate with the community in constructing a customised, co-funded network. They can also be combined to extend the ultrafast, highly reliable network to remote rural areas that may not be covered by private investments.
Paul Harland, Openreach’s regional engagement manager, expressed the excitement of the opportunity, emphasizing the need for around 100 more participants to pledge their vouchers for the scheme to proceed. Harland noted that Openreach’s Fibre Community Partnership programme has the potential to include hundreds more communities across the UK in Full Fibre build plans. However, expanding the network to remote areas remains a challenge, making it crucial for everyone in the community to cooperate, including residents, their neighbors, and Openreach.
Harland stated, “Everyone who pledges a voucher will be doing their bit to help make Samlesbury one of the best-connected places in the UK.”
Openreach’s substantial £15 billion investment aims to provide full fibre broadband to 25 million homes, with over six million of those in the most challenging regions of the UK. The government’s support plays a pivotal role in this nationwide upgrade.
Upon reaching the pledge target, residents must validate their vouchers with the government to enable Openreach to commence construction. Funding conditions require residents to commit to subscribing to a full fibre service from their chosen provider for at least 12 months once the new network is available and to confirm their connection.
