RESIDENTS and businesses in Ombersley, Doverdale, Holt Fleet and several other Worcestershire villages are set to get access to fibre broadband, as a result of £1.1 million extra funding.

In total 1,300 more premises will have the ability to use the high-speed fibre broadband after the case was made by Worcestershire County Council to include them in the Government’s scheme to provide the faster internet access to most of the UK.

Cllr Simon Geraghty, cabinet member for skills, economy and infrastructure at Worcestershire County Council, said: "I am so pleased to be able to confirm this additional funding for Worcestershire which will enable next generation fibre broadband to reach further rural areas. Our county-wide scheme is well underway and rollout has already achieved a greater number of cabinet upgrades than had been expected. This further funding will help us to extend that reach into even more rural areas."

Digital economy minister, Ed Vaizey, said: “This is fantastic news for Worcestershire. Not only is the project ahead of schedule, but the extra £1.1million that Government is providing will see even more businesses and homes in the county benefit from access to superfast broadband speeds.”

Steve Henderson, BT’s regional director for broadband partnerships, added: “The rollout of fibre optic broadband is a huge and complex engineering process, with the work progressing extremely well. At every stage, careful planning is undertaken to ensure the most cost-effective use of the funds available and it is great news that we are able extend our fibre coverage to benefit even more people across Worcestershire.”

Residents can find out if their area will get superfast broadband by visiting the Superfast Worcestershire website at superfastworcestershire.com and checking the postcode finder or looking at the updated county map.

People can also sign up to be informed of when upgrades are due to take place in their area, and find out more about how they can upgrade to the improved service once it’s available.