Among the beneficiaries is Cambridge Online, which has received £40,000 to support its digital inclusion work.

The funding targets communities included in Project Gigabit, the government’s initiative to deliver high-speed broadband to hard-to-reach areas. The Fund offers both small and large grants and is exclusive to Project Gigabit areas, aligning with the government’s contractual obligations for delivering social value alongside broadband infrastructure.

CityFibre’s Community Fund is designed to complement infrastructure rollout by ensuring people also have the skills and support they need to get online and use digital services confidently.

According to the Cambridgeshire Digital Partnership, around one percent of residents in the region are not online. Cambridge Online, a founding member of the Partnership, has launched a new year-long programme to expand its network of community hubs across Peterborough and Cambridge. The initiative will also help recruit more volunteers to support digitally excluded residents.

Marcus Whewell, CEO of Cambridge Online, said: “Thanks to CityFibre’s support, we can now scale up our free services and reach even more people in need. We’re proud to launch over a dozen community training hubs in the coming months.”

Cambridge Online currently supports over 1,500 people each year with free digital literacy sessions, delivered in partnership with local community organisations.

In addition to Cambridge Online, CityFibre’s Community Fund is also supporting:

• Phoenix Youth Provision

• Amplius

• First Star Scholars UK

These organisations are all based in areas where CityFibre is deploying Project Gigabit infrastructure.

]]> https://mobilenewscwp.co.uk/news/article/cityfibre-donates-400000-cambridge-community-connectivity-projects/feed/ 0 https://mobilenewscwp.co.uk/news/article/poor-broadband-stifling-farm-tech-adoption-warns-cityfibre-survey/ https://mobilenewscwp.co.uk/news/article/poor-broadband-stifling-farm-tech-adoption-warns-cityfibre-survey/#respond Thu, 01 May 2025 12:54:09 +0000 https://mncwp.tailrd.cloud/poor-broadband-stifling-farm-tech-adoption-warns-cityfibre-survey/ Poor internet connectivity on UK farms is threatening the adoption of AI and real-time monitoring, according to a  survey of 250 farmers commissioned by CityFibre. The study, by Censuswide, reveals that nearly eight per cent of farms still have no internet access, despite almost two-thirds of farmers viewing connectivity as critical to daily operations. The

Poor internet connectivity on UK farms is threatening the adoption of AI and real-time monitoring, according to a  survey of 250 farmers commissioned by CityFibre.

The study, by Censuswide, reveals that nearly eight per cent of farms still have no internet access, despite almost two-thirds of farmers viewing connectivity as critical to daily operations.

The findings raise concerns that unreliable broadband is holding back agricultural productivity and technological innovation at a time when the industry faces mounting economic and regulatory pressure.

Poor internet reliability

More than half of respondents expect their use of digital tools to grow in the next five years, yet 42 per cent cited poor internet reliability and speed as a key barrier—second only to cos )—to implementing new technologies.

CityFibre, says its data highlights an urgent need to accelerate rural connectivity rollouts through government-backed programmes like Project Gigabit. The company has secured nine contracts under the scheme, representing over £865 million in subsidies and unlocking nearly £1.2 billion in combined public and private investment to deliver full fibre to 500,000 rural premises.

Farmers with full fibre report operational gains. Nearly half credited it with enabling precision farming techniques, while others cited increased efficiency, diversification opportunities , and improved access to admin tools

Mental health

Beyond productivity, poor connectivity is also affecting farmers’ mental health and family life. Nine in ten admit to limiting internet use during peak hours, and many report feeling socially isolated due to the lack of reliable online access.

“Farmers need access to the cream of the crop when it comes to connectivity if we’re to fully unlock the economic and technological potential of British agriculture,” said CityFibre CEO Greg Mesch.

Mark Ullyott, a mixed arable and pig farmer in East Yorkshire, said poor connectivity poses a daily challenge. “We rely on satellite internet, which is far from ideal. Without it, we simply couldn’t run the business. Full fibre would be transformational.”

NFU Vice President Rachel Hallos added: “ Without reliable broadband, farmers are disadvantaged in meeting regulatory demands and running secure, modern operations.”

CityFibre says it will connect over 1.3 million rural and hard-to-reach homes and businesses to full fibre over the next five years as part of its Project Gigabit commitments. The government initiative has already reached its target of 85% gigabit coverage by the end of 2025 and now aims for universal access by 2030.

Project Gigabit is a £5 billion UK government initiative aimed at delivering gigabit-capable broadband to homes and businesses across the country, particularly in hard-to-reach rural and remote areas. It is managed by Building Digital UK (BDUK), an executive agency under the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, the programme seeks to bridge the digital divide and ensure nationwide connectivity

Project Gigabit aims achieve at least 85 per cent gigabit broadband coverage across the UK by the end of this year, with nearly 100 per cent by 2030. The programme focuses on areas unlikely to be served by commercial broadband providers

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Giacom was last week relaunched as the new single brand for what used to be te Digital Wholesale Solutions, Giacom and Union Street technologies brands (see story HERE)

CityFibre is an alt-net supplier and will enable Giacom to offer its partners the chance to sell full fibre in areas outside of the Openreach network and give them more choice when selecting replacement services in the lead up to the Nationwide Stop Sell of Wholesale Line Rental (WLR), and the PSTN Switch Off and the end of 2025.

CityFibre is Giacom’s first alt-net supplier for full fibre broadband. The two companies already have a commercial relationship, with Giacom having offered CityFibre Ethernet since 2018.  CityFibures full figure offers synchronous upload and download speeds of up to 1Gbps.

“CityFibre FTTP offers symmetrical bandwidth, making it truly unique within our portfolio and a valuable addition to our product range. This service will help our partners o differentiate themselves in the market.” said Giacom CEO Terry O’Brien.

City Fibre Business Sales Director Andrew Wilson added; “Our footprint gives Giacom’s partners the ability to offer full fibre broadband services to businesses for the first time and as our build continues to scale, that opportunity keeps growing’

Last week, City Fibre announced Suffolk and Norfolk will become the next recipients of high-speed broadband. Funding for the project is being split between City Fibre and the government, and with the government promising 5bn total to reach rural communities across the nation, unfettered private-public collaboration like this is set to seriously level-up connectivity across Britain.

TalkTalk’s Business Wholesale Services is to partner with CityFibre to offer UK wholesale customers access to CityFibre’s business Ethernet services.

CityFibre builds fiber-optic communication infrastructure and aims to cover up to a third of the UK by 2025 with eight million homes, 800,000 businesses, 400,00 0ocal authority sites and 250,000 5G access points.

Its platform is used by major internet service providers, as well as new smaller regional internet service providers delivering full fibre broadband.

CityFibre is owned by Antin Infrastructure Partners, Goldman Sachs Asset Management, Mubadala Investment Company and Interogo Holding.

An existing relationship already exists between between connectivity provider Virtual1, which was acquired by Talk Talk in March 2022, and CityFibre., makes CityFibre’s Ethernet proposition available across the TalkTalk’s Business Wholesale Services business.

TalkTalk expects other Ethernet suppliers will join the service.

“”This new B2B partnership will grow as its footprint expands and product portfolio widens. see CityFibre as a key partner” said Tom O’Hagan, Managing Director of TalkTalk Business Wholesale Services.

George Wareing, Chief Sales Officer of CityFibre, added: 

“The combination of TalkTalk Business Wholesale Services scale and automation represents a compelling proposition. We look forward to a long and successful partnership.”

CityFibre and Vodafone have has successfully completed a trial of 2Gbps residential services in York over the recent upgrade of its York network to the faster XGS-PON access technology.

This is twice the speed of the fastest services widely available on CityFibre’s network. The 2Gbps service is a forerunner to residential and business services at speeds of up to 10Gbps across its entire footprint in the future.

The new services were delivered via Vodafone’s Pro II Broadband service and Vodafone Ultra Hub and Super WiFi6E Booster bundle.

The XGS-PON upgrade improves network performance by almost 10 times the capability of the current G-PON architecture.

Michael Greening, Product Director at CityFibre, said: “We’re a major step closer to bringing multi-gig full-fibre services to millions of homes and businesses across the country. But at 2Gbps, we’re barely scratching the surface of our network’s capabilities. Our XGS-PON upgrade programme will offer symmetrical speeds of up to 10Gbps.”

Max Taylor, Chief Commercial Officer of Vodafone UK, said: “Vodafone is the biggest Full Fibre broadband provider in the UK. Recording our fastest home WiFi speed showcases the true capability of our Pro II Broadband, the UK’s fastest router”.

CityFibre owns, operates and maintains fibre-to-the-building infrastructure in at least 60 cities in the United Kingdom. As of 21 March 2022, 1.5 million premises were connected to the CityFibre network

CityFibre is spending £50 million rolling out full fibre connections to schools, homes, and
businesses in Maidstone.

The investment will be town-wide and bring full fibre enabled internet bandwidth and
connectivity in the Kent area.

This full fibre roll out is expected to lead to increased innovation and business turnover
and enable new businesses and new business models.

Construction in the area is set to begin in January and once houses are designated as
‘ready for service’, they can choose to connect to full fibre-enabled broadband services.

Area manager Anne Kraus will be overseeing the project and will also be the main point
if contact. She says: “Our new full fibre network in Maidstone will strengthen the town’s
digital infrastructure for decades to come, helping boost the local economy. The
technology will not only unlock huge benefits for businesses, it will also allow residents
to enjoy seamless streaming when gaming or watching movies at home.”

Fibre alternative networks (AltNets) are playing a key role in the UK’s gigabit future as data from Ookla reveals that AltNets had the top speeds in London, Glasgow, Liverpool and Manchester. 

Seven large internet service providers (ISPs) dominate the UK’s fixed broadband market, but now dozens of AltNets are emerging due to public funding which allows them to expand to rural areas. 

CityFibre was identified as the largest alternative fibre network provider as it recently secured a £4.9 billion debt package that will fund a network covering eight million homes by 2025.

Other key points

The data found that during H1 2022, the median broadband download speed was 61.69 Mbps, with Northern Ireland ranked first in the UK with median download speeds of 65.21 Mbps.

England followed with 62.40 Mbps, then Scotland with 57.13 Mbps and Wales with 49.71 Mbps. 

Virgin Media O2 was named the UK’s fastest broadband provider with a median download speed of 116.44 Mbps during Q1-Q2 2022 and was the clear speed leader across 71 per cent of 146 British counties that Ookla looked at.

BT came second with top speeds reaching 10pc of counties, while Vodafone came third by reaching five counties.

CityFibre is spending £52 million rolling out full fibre connections to schools, homes, and businesses in Plymouth. The Company claims to be UK’s largest independent, wholesale only, fibre operator.

Consultancy firm Hatch reckons the investment will pay off within 15 years by
enabling increased productivity in the city from faster connectivity. This is expected to lead to increased innovation and business turnover and enable new businesses and new business models.

Local MP Johnny Mercer said: “Fast and reliable broadband is essential to make the
most of opportunities online, The Government is committed tom getting gigabit speeds to 85 per cent of the country in the next three years”.

Each CityFibre connection can support up to 60,000 premises. The company already supplies fibre connections to 285 towns and villages and eight million homes.

CityFibre has named Sittingbourne in Kent as the next UK town to receive a multi million pound investment in its digital infrastructure.

The investment will be town-wide and bring full fibre enabled internet services to almost every home and business in Sittingbourne as part of a wider investment in the Kent area.

Construction in the area is set to begin later this year and once the service goes live in their neighbourhood, residents can choose to connect to CityFibre’s full fibre broadband.

Once the rollout is complete in Sittingbourne, services will be available from a range of broadband providers.

Area manager Anne Krausse said: “In a few short months, our builders will get to work on a town-wide Full Fibre network – and we think people will be amazed by the difference it will make, both now and for generations to come. 

This technology will bring a whole host of opportunities for residents and businesses in the southeast and we can’t wait for them to see what is possible with strong digital connectivity.”

Nokia has secured a 10-year partnership with CityFibre to supply the full fibre provider with its XGS-PON technology to offer 10Gbps broadband.

The agreement will enable CityFibre access nodes for its nationwide network of purpose-built fibre exchanges as CityFibre builds an open access network which will connect up to eight million premises in 285 towns and cities.

This will enable the firm to deliver higher bandwidth services for CityFibre to offer its wholesale customers through its multigig residential broadband, with speeds of up to 10Gbps – which is ten times the capacity of its current G-PON based service.

This new technology is an updated standard for Passive Optical Networks.

Shipments will begin in the fourth quarter of 2022, as these nodes will support CityFibre in developing all its networks to XGS-PON technology.

This technology will be future-proof too, as it’s powered by Nokia’s Quillion chipset, which has the same access nodes that can be used for both XGS-PON and also 25G PON (25Gbps).

“The demand for ever-faster speeds continues and we’re delighted that our 25G ready solution has been chosen by CityFibre to enable their GPON to 10G XGS-PON national network upgrade program, supporting their mission to offer the highest capacity wholesale services into the UK market,” said Nokia fixed networks president Sandy Motley.

CityFibre will also be working with Calix as another of its XGS-PON partners.

California-based telco Calix has been CityFibre’s G-PON partner since 2018, helping the company in its development of its full fibre network.