BUSINESSES and residents in County Durham with slow internet speeds could get cash to improve connectivity.

As part of the Government’s Project Gigabit Connectivity programme, some businesses and residents can get funds towards the cost of installing gigabit-capable broadband to their premises when part of a group project.

Under the scheme, more than one million hard-to-reach homes and businesses will have gigabit broadband built to them.

It aims to help families so they no longer have to battle over bandwidth and to give people in these areas the freedom to live and work more flexibly.

Broadband provider YouFibre and fibre-network operator Netomnia, are offering to bring ultrafast full fibre broadband to residents and businesses in Trimdon, Trimdon Colliery, Trimdon Grange, Cornforth, Chilton, Wheatley Hill, Thornley, Ludworth, Shadforth, Sherburn Hill, Sherburn Village, Little Town and High and Low Pittington, Sherburn Village, Sherburn Hill, Shadforth, and Little Town with the help of the Government’s Gigabit Broadband Voucher Scheme.

Rural premises with speeds below 100 Megabit per second (Mbps) can apply for up to £3,500 per small and medium-sized business (SME) and up to £1,500 per resident to support the cost of installing new connections – subject to eligibility rules.

Group projects are when two or more residents and/or SMEs get together to combine their vouchers towards the shared cost of installation. Single connections are not eligible for additional funding.

For these projects to go ahead and the network be delivered, there needs to be enough demand for better broadband from the area; this is demonstrated through residents and businesses pledging their Gigabit Voucher towards the project. If sufficient vouchers are pledged for each village, YouFibre and Netomnia can proceed with delivery and service plans for the area.

The vouchers cover the costs of delivering the network and the installation costs, meaning residents and businesses don’t have to pay these costs, as is the case with independent community-led projects.

Once registration is made on the website (youfibre.com/voucher), Netomnia will request the voucher from the Government. The DCMS will then send out confirmation emails from Gov.UK to each voucher applicant to authenticate their participation in the scheme.

Once this is done, the vouchers will be allocated towards the project and Netomnia must deliver the network within 12 months from this point.

YouFibre and Netomnia urge people to take advantage of this opportunity and pledge their vouchers to the project before the scheme’s closing date for application submissions on September 24, 2021.

YouFibre information events will be held from 10am to 4.30pm at Trimdon Village Hall on Tuesday, Wednesday, September 8, Chilton Club on Thursday and Thornley Village Centre on Friday.

While residents and businesses can register their interest online, YouFibre and Netomnia staff will be welcoming everyone who attends the events with refreshments and local, hand-made cupcakes.

Additionally, anyone who pledges their voucher at the event will be entered into a draw to win an Amazon gift card.

Those unable to attend can visit youfibre.com/voucher/

 

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