Openreach has rolled out its network to 70 per cent of homes and businesses in the Kirklees area.
The company has spent more than £42 million locally so far to build a new full fibre network in dozens of communities, including in and around Batley, Cleckheaton, Dewsbury, Heckmondwike. Honley, Huddersfield, Kirkburton, Meltham and Milnsbridge.However, only around 23 per cent of residents have adopted the service where it’s available, lagging behind the UK average of 34 per cent.
Matthew Lovegrove, Openreach partnership manager for Yorkshire and the Humber, said, “This is a fantastic milestone to reach but there’s more to do. Our investment across the Kirklees area continues, and we’re determined to deliver a great service which helps communities to thrive and supports people to work from home easily, keep in touch with their loved ones and build connections and opportunities.
“Switching is easy and may even be cheaper than your existing broadband package but it’s important to remember that upgrades don’t happen automatically. People need to contact, and place orders through, their broadband service provider to take advantage.”
Businesses using the network can operate with certainty that their broadband will support all their day-to-day, business critical tasks such as video calls, banking and customer interaction via social media platforms.
A report by the Centre for Economics & Business Research has shown that connecting everyone in Yorkshire and the Humber to full fibre broadband would create a £3.3 billion for the local economy, by unlocking smarter ways of working, better public services and greater opportunities for the next-generation of home-grown businesses.
Openreach has announced plans to invest in full fibre broadband for the majority of premises in dozens of towns and villages across the Kirklees area. It’s part of the company’s plans to reach 25 million UK homes and businesses by the end of 2026.