Progress so far
In 2014 just 69% of Oxfordshire homes and businesses had access to superfast broadband. That figure now stands at 98%, with the Better Broadband for Oxfordshire programme having added over 90,000 connections.
During this period average broadband speeds have risen from 16Mb/s to 78Mb/s. Adoption of fibre enabled broadband services delivered under the programme currently stands at over 81% and continues to rise, providing convincing evidence of the high demand for fast broadband connectivity. This percentage translates to there being nearly 150,000 people in Oxfordshire consuming a service which would not have been available without the programme intervention.
Due to the demonstrative success achieved by the programme, we have extended the scope to include a focus now on ‘full-fibre’ broadband connectivity, mobile coverage (including 5G), and the wider adoption of smart-enabled infrastructure in local planning. Much of the public sector funding applied to the programme has generated a healthy financial return which is now being reinvested to drive full fibre coverage further and faster.