An Openreach pledge last October to make ultrafast, ultra-reliable and future-proof broadband available in several market towns and villages across the South West has become a reality in Okehampton. More than 3,000 homes and businesses can now access ‘Full Fibre’ broadband speeds of up to one gigabit per second (1000Mbps) – that’s more than 15 times faster than today’s UK average broadband speed. As designated key workers, Openreach engineers have been hard at work throughout the Covid-19 lockdown, building the new network that uses the latest Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) broadband technology – where fibre optic cables are laid all the way to people’s front doors.
Mel Stride MP met with engineer Rob Camies in Okehampton on Monday in the Victoria Arcade to discuss the progress that has been made and what remains to be done.
Mel said:
“I have pressed for many years for better broadband for Okehampton and so I am delighted that Fibre-to-the-Premises is now available to thousands of households and businesses in the town. Good connectivity is essential for everyone; whether it’s for working from home, home-schooling or helping businesses survive and thrive. Openreach engineers have been busy over the last few months making this possible and I will continue to push for more of our market towns and harder-to-reach communities to have access to better internet speeds”.
Cllr Julie Yelland, Mayor of Okehampton Town Council, said, “I am delighted that the people of Okehampton can access ultrafast broadband and all the benefits it can bring to businesses and communities. Throughout the pandemic it has been abundantly clear that faster and more reliable broadband is absolutely paramount and will continue to be essential as we move forward into our “new normal”. I welcome the opportunities that increased broadband speeds will bring and would encourage people who can access it to talk to their internet providers about taking advantage of the new ultra-fast speeds that are now available."
