Rural parts of Yorkshire Dales finally get access to superfast broadband

The next stage of the Superfast North Yorkshire programme is targeting the most challenging areas of the county where it has previously not been viable to provide the improved internet connections.

The first deeply rural area to benefit is centred on Buckden in the Yorkshire Dales. Improved connections have also been provided in nearby Cray, Hubberholme and Yockenthwaite, and a total of 39 properties have benefitted.

The fourth phase of the Superfast Broadband programme is set to be completed by March next year, with a total of 15,830 premises benefitting from vastly improved internet connections.

Of those properties, 84 per cent are in rural locations, North Yorkshire Council said.

Among villagers who have been given improved broadband connections is Gill Huck, who lives at Church Farm in Stubbing Lane in Hubberholme. Mrs Huck runs the 1,800-acre farm, which has 1,000 sheep and 100 cattle, with her husband, John, and their son, James, and his wife, Lucy.

Mrs Huck, who herself grew up in a farming family in Wensleydale, said: “To have the improved connection to the internet has really changed our lives. Before the connections were a lot slower and had a habit of dropping out, but now we have the peace of mind that we can actually access the internet when we want.

“It has helped so much with the running of the farm when we need to order supplies or fill out forms online – the internet is not something that is simply the reserve of towns and cities, and it is part of modern life wherever you live.”

North Yorkshire Council’s leader, Cllr Carl Les, said: “The need to provide decent broadband connectivity to rural parts of the county has long been an aspiration of ours.

“The fact that it is now becoming a reality will be of a huge benefit to those communities that have been technologically disadvantaged for so long.

"We all know how reliable internet connections are so important for everyday life in the 21 st century, and we are committed to ensuring that homes and businesses have access to broadband wherever they are based.”

During the Superfast North Yorkshire project, more than £29 million has been invested from a combination of sources.

Grants have been obtained from Building Digital UK which is part of the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, the European Regional Development Fund, and the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development operated by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.

Last year, research showed rural parts of Harrogate have the worst broadband connectivity in the region.

The multi-million pound scheme to dramatically enhance broadband speeds in the county began in 2012 and by the end of phase four, more than 200,000 premises across North Yorkshire will have improved broadband access.

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