Northumberland communities connected to lightning-fast broadband in Project Gigabit first

• Dozens of Northumberland communities connected to lightning-fast broadband as first full project contract completed four months ahead of schedule.

• Over 3,800 homes and businesses across north Northumberland can stream, shop and work online without buffering.

• New figures reveal Project Gigabit and Shared Rural Network are supercharging Government's Plan for Change reducing the digital divide, with 17 premises per hour gaining gigabit access across the country.

Over 3,800 homes and businesses across north Northumberland can now access lightning-fast broadband in a major milestone for the Government's mission to close the digital divide.

Broadband provider GoFibre has installed 415 kilometres of new full-fibre cable to dozens of rural communities in north Northumberland, from Seahouses to Wooler – enough cable to stretch along Hadrian's Wall three-and-a-half times over.

Over 300 businesses in the region – including factories, farms, pubs, and even wedding venues – can now access speeds over 30 times faster, boosting productivity and helping grow the local economy as part of the Government's Plan for Change.

More families across north Northumberland can now get on with everyday tasks online like paying bills, ordering the weekly shop, working from home or booking an NHS appointment, with faster internet speeds and better reliability.

As part of their commitments as a Project Gigabit supplier, GoFibre also offered a number of free connections to important community facilities in the region. Connections to Harbottle Village Hall, East Ord Village Hall and Lucker Village Hall are already supporting community fitness classes and improving access to essential services for day-to-day operations.

DSIT Minister Ian Murray said:

We committed to end the digital postcode lottery, and today's milestone in Northumberland shows we're not just making promises – we're keeping them.

Whether you're streaming your favourite show or running a business from the kitchen table, lightning-fast broadband means no more buffering and more getting on with your day.”  

One business that is feeling the benefits is Border Links, an organisation that develops opportunities for social and economic inclusion for people with learning disabilities in the region.

Melanie Deans from Border Links said:

We run six venues across the Borders - some pretty remote - and before full-fibre, staying connected was a challenge. Now we can keep in touch online a lot more easily without the worry of meetings dropping out halfway through.

But what's really exciting is what it has done for our teaching. We can now create resources that work for everyone, technology lets us be so much more creative and inclusive than we ever could before.

Neil Conaghan, CEO of GoFibre, said: 

On behalf of the outstanding team at GoFibre, I'm tremendously proud that not only is GoFibre the first provider to have successfully completed the build for a Project Gigabit contract in the UK, but we've done it an incredible four months ahead of schedule.  

This means that thousands of homes and businesses across North Northumberland, including in underserved and rural areas, can now get access to the very fastest full fibre broadband available on the GoFibre network, with all the benefits that brings. 

The GoFibre team have brought expertise and hard work to ensure quality project delivery, and most importantly the collaboration with everyone from government, to the local authority, public bodies and the local community have ensured we've completed this project, swiftly, smoothly and effectively. Our significant base in Berwick-upon-Tweed, where our industry-leading customer service team is based, has also been a real enabler for delivery.” 

ENDS 

Notes to editors 

Cllr Glen Sanderson, Leader of Northumberland County Council said:

We have worked to get this complex major job delivered for some time, so it is very welcome that we have gotten here.

It is fantastic news that more of our residents and businesses can access the fastest possible internet speeds.

Having the latest and fastest connectivity is no longer a ‘nice-to-have' but a necessity for business and leisure alike, whether that is accessing online banking, healthcare appointments, keeping in touch with family and friends or streaming the latest movies.

It is so important we have this provision for everyone in our county.

• Areas to benefit from the completed rollout include: Seahouses, Belford, Otterburn, Harbottle and Wooler among others.
• Bringing faster broadband to this part of Northumberland has been no small feat:
• Due to lacking or poor quality pre-existing telecoms infrastructure, a high proportion of the network required brand new underground build with more than 100km of new piping deployed.
• A challenging crossing over the historically significant Norham Bridge was navigated to cross a localised gigabit divide between England and Scotland to take the network to a small number of premises around Ladykirk and Upsettlington in the Scottish Borders.
• To serve the popular coastal villages around Seahouses, engineers had to bring cables across the busy East Coast Main Line railway twice and carefully navigate the complex road network, working closely with Northumberland County Council streetworks teams every step of the way.