Recent evidence on connectivity supplied by a range of private and public sector broadband providers found that around 49,000 people still have poor broadband coverage in North Yorkshire and the vast majority of these – nearly 38,000 – live in rural pockets across that region.

Thanks to a government Rural Gigabit Voucher Scheme, broadband provider Quickline Communications is now reaching and engaging with residents and businesses across some of the remotest parts of North Yorkshire, showcasing how the business is able to build a hybrid network to deliver gigabit-capable speeds to rural communities.

The voucher scheme gives homes and small-to-medium sized businesses (SMEs) in more rural locations across the county, access to vouchers worth up to £1,500 per house and £3,500 for each SME to support the cost of installing faster more efficient broadband, which has been a lifeline for many.

“Having access to reliable Wi-Fi has now become a human necessity for all of us. The rollout of this government voucher scheme is now making it an affordable reality for many who either choose to or have to live in far-to-reach places,” said Sean Royce, CEO of Quickline Communications.

One such beautiful, yet remote location that was previously left behind is Little Langton in Hambleton, North Yorkshire. The hamlet is home to roughly 50 residents all of whom rely heavily on broadband, whether it is staying connected to loved ones, business use, online shopping, paying bills and just generally keeping in touch with the ‘outside world’. Through the Rural Gigabit Voucher Scheme, nearly all the community has been able to access Quickline’s lightning-fast broadband services.

Little Langton resident, Issy Fife, of Langton Hall is already experiencing the benefits of the Quickline’s ‘Gigabit’ package.

Commenting on her new and improved service, Issy said:

“It has been a long journey to get to where we are, roughly three years in total! Prior to taking part in the government’s Rural Gigabit Voucher Scheme we had an extremely poor broadband access. All of our children were working from home during the pandemic had to use a dongle which was very slow. Our small hamlet here is in a black hole when it comes to accessing Wi-Fi, once we discovered we were eligible for the programme we contacted Quickline, who was able to install a much faster fibre connection. It is now quite amazing! It has been a wonderful turn around for us both personally and professionally.

“I’d also like to say a big thank you to Quickline and its team for its incredible service in getting us up and running in no time.”

Quickline uses a combination of technologies – fibre and fixed wireless – to achieve the best result possible, which is ultrafast speeds and, in most cases, gigabit capable (1000mbps).

“Little Langton is just one example of a community which has been suffering across all aspects of everyday life because they were being let down by sub-par broadband,” continued Sean.

“It’s incredible just how many people still live with very poor-quality internet access, which is totally unacceptable when being connected is an essential part of daily life. We don’t want these individuals to be forgotten simply because their postcode is a little further afield. At Quickline we are investing heavily in gigabit-capable broadband infrastructure across the North of England and it’s our mission and commitment to deliver it to hundreds of thousands of customers across the region,” added Sean.

Councillor Brian Phillips for the Hambleton District Council said:

“There are many who are living across the Hambleton and North Yorkshire area who are disconnected from the rest of the county. This brings so many disadvantages and hurdles to those who live and work remotely, and it really doesn’t have to be this way.

“Investment from the government, and in particular our MP for North Yorkshire, Rishi Sunak, who recognises that isolated communities need a helping hand – combined with Quickline’s excellent ultrafast connectivity developed to reach these difficult areas, is the perfect collaboration to conquer this issue.”