Openreach Plans Fibre Upgrades in Neath Port Talbot

Openreach has announced plans to install fibre broadband in the Upper Cwmtwrch area including areas of Rhiwfawr Rd, Rhiw Rd, Coedffaldau Rd and Cwmllynfell, through their Fibre Community Partnership (FCP) programme.

The Fibre Community Partnership allows Openreach to upgrade existing broadband infrastructure by having eligible premises pledge their UK Government Gigabit Broadband voucher to the project.Once a target amount of pledges is received, Openreach can then move forward to installing the fibre broadband infrastructure in the area.

Residents can check if they qualify and pledge their voucher on the Connect My Community website. The decision on the fibre infrastructure build, the scope of premises covered, and the timeline are all subject to technical surveys, as well as the number of vouches pledged by the community.

The validated vouchers do not bear any cost to residents and sufficient take up will enable Openreach to work with a local community to build a customised, co-funded network. However, once the infrastructure is in place, residents are committed to ordering an ultrafast full fibre broadband package from a provider who uses the Openreach network, for a minimum of 12-months.

This project will mainly benefit Neath Port Talbot residents in the area, but also extends into parts of Carmarthenshire and Powys, as the areas included are on the boundaries of these neighbouring counties.

Neath Port Talbot Councillor Jeremy Hurley, Cabinet Member for Climate Change & Economic Growth said:

“This is fantastic news for the Upper Cwmtwrch and Cwmllynfell communities! I’m so pleased that Openreach will be bringing high-speed fibre broadband to this area. Not only will this improve connectivity for residents, but it will also support local businesses, schools and other community facilities, driving economic growth in the area. I encourage all residents to check whether they are eligible and make a ‘pledge.”

Martin Williams, Director of Partnerships for Openreach in Wales, said:

“This is a really exciting opportunity for people living and working in these parts of Neath Port Talbot to bring all the benefits of ultra fast, ultra-reliable Full Fibre broadband to their community. Our Fibre Community Partnership programme has meant that we’ve been able to bring thousands of additional properties across Wales and the rest of the UK into our Full Fibre build plans. But building out the network to these harder to reach locations is still challenging – which is why it’s only possible with everyone working together – you, your neighbours and Openreach”.

“Everyone who pledges a voucher will be doing their bit to help make their community one of the best-connected places in the UK”. 

“We’re investing £15 billion to build full fibre broadband to 25 million homes – and more than six million of those will be in the toughest third of the UK – but we can’t upgrade the whole country alone. This latest support from government is a vital part of that process.”