More than 60,000 rural homes and businesses across Yorkshire and Lincolnshire can now access faster broadband through the UK Government’s Project Gigabit.
The government said communities around Barnsley, Huddersfield, Hull, Bradford, York, Boston and Wisbech are among those to benefit. Winterton in North Lincolnshire, Fosdyke in Lincolnshire, and Sessay and Linton on Ouse in Yorkshire were also named among the latest locations connected.
The rollout is intended to improve everyday connectivity for households, students and firms in areas affected by poor broadband. The government said faster and more reliable services would help people make video calls, learn online, take payments, reach customers and run businesses more easily.
The provider Quickline has received £127 million through Project Gigabit for work in Yorkshire and Lincolnshire. Its chief executive Mark Bowden said, according to the government release, that more than 60,000 homes and businesses can now access gigabit-capable broadband through the Project Gigabit rollout, while the firm’s full fibre network reaches about 260,000 premises across the two areas.
The programme has also been linked to training and skills activity. Quickline has supported more than 1,700 young people to learn about science, technology, engineering and maths careers, and ran workshops in East Yorkshire for 80 Year 5 and Year 6 pupils from Skirlaugh Primary School.
More than 130 people from Yorkshire and Lincolnshire have gained hands-on experience through Quickline’s apprenticeship programme, the government said. Ministers said more villages, hamlets and rural homes are being brought on to the network each week.