Funding boost for Northumberland fibre broadband rollout

Northumberland's fibre optic broadband plans have received a shot in the arm in the form of a £5.5 million funding boost.

The European Regional Development Fund has awarded the cash, with half coming from the scheme and the remainder from the county council and private sector partners, reports the Northumberland Gazette.

This latest boost takes the local authority's broadband funding up to £16 million plus any money staked by private enterprises, potentially allowing the council's rollout to include more businesses.

Some firms that would otherwise have missed out on the project can now look forward to receiving faster speeds, either via a fibre optic or copper connection.

Procurement for cash from the government's Broadband Delivery UK framework is entering its final stages, with the work set to be completed by April 19th 2013 at the latest.

Once this stage of the process is finished, the local authority will unveil a full programme of work detailing the locations set to benefit from the broadband rollout.