Project Gigabit broadband rollout created 3,080 jobs and apprenticeships in England

The government has today revealed that their £5bn Project Gigabit programme, which aims to help extend gigabit broadband (1000Mbps+) ISP networks to “nationwide” coverage (c.99% of UK premises) by 2032, has created “more than 3,000 jobs and apprenticeships” in England (e.g. engineers, support staff etc.).

Some 91% of UK premises can already access such a network today (here) and Ofcom are forecasting this could reach up to 95% by January 2029 (here), although it’s worth noting that most of that has been delivered by commercial builds. The Project Gigabit scheme has been more focused on tackling the hardest-to-reach final 10-20% of premises, where commercial builds often struggle with economic viability.

From jobs on the ground in the most rural parts of the country, to office-based roles in finance, operations and other professions, new figures from broadband suppliers released today show the government’s national broadband upgrade has supported skilled roles across the telecoms sector. But sadly we don’t get any figures for other parts of the UK.

UK Telecoms Minister, Ian Murray, said:

“Behind every new broadband connection are engineers, apprentices and local teams learning the skills to give communities the fast, reliable connections they need for modern life.

This is a government which is opening up rewarding careers while delivering the next-generation broadband that homes and businesses need.

Through Project Gigabit we are doing two jobs at once: creating skilled opportunities and upgrading communities with the connectivity they need to grow – helping make sure growth and opportunity reaches every postcode.”

We should point out that the total of 3,080 reflects 2,630 direct and indirect national recruitment roles, as well as 450 apprenticeships created nationally.