A new report has revealed Colchester remains in the bottom half of the UK league table for access to full fibre broadband.
Just 28% of homes in Colchester can access the technology, equating to 24,743 premises, which is significantly lower than the UK average of 52% (15.4m households).
A further analysis of the figures reveals a more positive picture across the wider county with Maldon at 71% (21,964), Braintree at 60% (43,575) and Chelmsford at 54% (45,621 premises) although Uttlesford is slightly behind at 46% (19,322)
The Connected Nations report, published by Ofcom, is based on findings from April and May 2023. Whilst it’s the first time UK full fibre access has passed the 50% threshold, around 62,000 premises are still unable to access ‘decent’ broadband which is defined as download speeds of at least 10 Mbps and upload speeds above 1 Mbps.
The government has committed to achieving nationwide full fibre broadband coverage by 2030. The new report highlighted the rollout of full fibre broadband was ‘supported by a number of smaller providers across the UK serving individual communities and regions’.
One such provider is County Broadband which is building new full fibre broadband networks in dozens of villages across Essex. The firm is deploying the new infrastructure in over 250 villages across the East of England, focusing on rural and hard to reach areas, and is backed by a £146 million of private investment from Aviva Investors.
Responding to the new Ofcom report, James Salmon, Director of Corporate Development at County Broadband, said: “It’s positive to see the UK as a whole has reached the 50% full fibre milestone but it’s clear there are significant regional variations.
“Whilst Colchester certainly isn’t in the full fibre relegation zone, it has slipped behind on the national league table whilst Maldon and Braintree surge ahead. Homes and businesses will be well aware of the postcode lottery when it comes to decent broadband access, which for many is now the fourth utility.
“The importance of reliable connectivity for remote work, entertainment and accessing vital services from healthcare to education is well known. The average speed that customers can achieve across the UK now stands at 94Mbps which is faster than the existing copper networks can deliver.
“Building full fibre broadband networks is essential to futureproof homes and businesses but rural communities have historically been overlooked by the national providers, often due to the cost or logistical challenges of connecting them.
“That’s why we’re focussed on building our networks in rural villages to ensure these communities are not left behind. We’re continuing to accelerate our rollout in response to growing demand to give Colchester a boost on the national league table.”
Full fibre broadband uses fibre-to-the-premises (FTTP) infrastructure where fibre optic cables are installed directly into premises to deliver faster and more reliable download and upload speeds of up to 1,000 Mbps. This is 11x faster than the existing Superfast networks which rely on copper cables and the government has said are no longer fit for purpose.
Residents and businesses can check if they are covered in County Broadband’s rollout by entering their postcode at www.countybroadband.co.uk
