THREE villages near Alresford will receive superfast broadband after Meon Valley MP Flick Drummond secured financing.

The MP said she was pleased her lobbying of BDUK over several years has secured funding for the rollout in Bramdean, Cheriton and Kilmeston. 

The latest success follows work in Owslebury to improve its broadband speeds.

This latest work follows on from the Community Fibre Partnership programme which is bringing superfast broadband to several communities in the Meon Valley.
Building Digital UK (BDUK) has also signed a contract with City Fibre for other areas which still lack fast broadband and are unlikely to receive a commercial service.

“These internet upgrades using government money will make a big difference to these villages and help close the digital divide between town and rural areas – something that is good for the rural economy and for those who now work more from home,” said Mrs Drummond.

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“Meon Valley already has 94 per cent coverage overall for superfast broadband but for the rural parts of the constituency that drops to 89 per cent.

“That is because there have been a few small areas in the bottom 10 per cent of UK speeds and this is where I have concentrated my work to some success for residents.

“One of the challenges is getting different public utilities which own infrastructure to work together and I have to admit I have been rather a pest on this to ensure we got the results needed for these villages.”

She added: “I will be working with BDUK to ensure it goes ahead as quickly as possible while continuing to identify remaining areas of Meon Valley where speeds are lagging.  

“This could mean an upgrade through the fibre scheme, but also using wireless technology like 5G.”