The new locations stretch across the country – from Alloway, in Ayrshire; to Helsby, in Cheshire; and Ivybridge, in South Devon – and bring the programme to over 560 towns, cities, boroughs, villages and hamlets. The £12 billion project aims to bring ‘full fibre’ technology to 20 million premises across the UK by the mid-to-late 2020s, assuming the right regulatory and political fibre enablers are in place.
Clive Selley, CEO of Openreach, said, “Despite the challenges of the pandemic we’re continuing to make great strides towards our goal to build ultrafast, ultra-reliable broadband to 20 million homes and businesses.
“For homes, shops, GP surgeries and schools across the country it will mean fewer broadband faults, faster connections, and a consistent reliable network that will serve them for decades to come.”
Openreach publishes details of its build plans on a quarterly basis to update on where FTTP is currently being built, has already been built, or where building will start within the next three months. This allows stakeholders – like Communications Providers (CP), end-customers and council planners – to make informed decisions on their FTTP investments and sales efforts, helping to encourage more people to adopt and take advantage of the new service when it arrives.
Since the build programme began in February 2018, Openreach engineers have deployed around 2.6 million kilometres of fibre – reaching more than three million premises across the UK.