A multimillion-pound investment is set to improve broadband in 76,000 rural homes and businesses in Hampshire thanks to the latest boost from Project Gigabit.

The government will give City Fibre £104m to improve connectivity and deliver new fast broadband connections to homes and businesses.

The investment from the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology fund will benefit 76,000 homes in the Hampshire countryside.

City Fibre will build the full-fibre connectivity after the UK government awarded it £318m for work in Norfolk and Suffolk as well as Hampshire. City Fibre will spend £54m of its own money in Hampshire.

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Survey works are anticipated to be completed in December, and the first ‘live connections’ are expected by January 2024.

The project is expected to be completed by March 2029 in the region.

Once connected, residents and businesses will have access to fast broadband services over a network that supports speeds of up to 10Gbps.

Leader of Hampshire County Council, Councillor Rob Humby, said: "It is fantastic that residents, businesses and communities across rural Hampshire will benefit from this government investment to deliver reliable, high-speed full-fibre broadband to areas that are not commercially viable.

"This latest investment sits alongside the £14m contract awarded in March this year to upgrade properties in the New Forest and is a terrific example of our unique role as a large local authority in being a key influencer and enabler to bring organisations and businesses together and secure substantial investment in the interests of boosting Hampshire’s economic and social prosperity."

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For its part, Minister for Data and Digital Infrastructure, Sir John Whittingdale, said: "Access to lightning-speed broadband is key to the government’s plans for driving economic growth and levelling up communities.

"Delivered through our flagship Project Gigabit programme, 218,000 homes and businesses across Norfolk, Suffolk, and Hampshire will benefit from a modern digital infrastructure, helping to power local communities and our plan to boost connectivity all over the UK."

Project Gigabit is the Government’s £5bn programme that enables ‘hard-to-reach’ communities to access gigabit-capable broadband.

It targets homes and businesses not included in broadband suppliers’ commercial plans, reaching parts of the UK that might otherwise miss out on getting the digital connectivity they need.

By the end of 2025, the government is targeting 85 per cent of the UK to have gigabit-capable connectivity and nationwide coverage by 2030.