5,400 Sheffield Council Homes to Get 1Gbps Hyperoptic Broadband

UK ISP Hyperoptic, which specialises in building 1Gbps capable “full fibre” (FTTP/B) broadband networks to large urban apartment buildings, has reached a new agreement in Sheffield that will see their service being expanded to cover 5,400 homes in the city council’s housing portfolio.

At present Hyperoptic have already deployed their service to around 3,500 private homes (flats) in the city. On top of that they’re now about to reach a further 5,400 in social housing (total of 8,900) following a new agreement with the city council.

The press release doesn’t offer much detail on the deal itself, although such things usually involve a streamlined approach to wayleave agreements (legal land / property access) and we’re told that it will be supported by a new Internet Voucher Scheme – allowing 540 tenants and leaseholders to access a 50Mbps product “at no cost for 12 months.”

John McCabe, Hyperoptic’s Head of Business Development – National, said:

“Councils have got a very important role to play in expediting the rollout of full fibre across Britain. We are working with 50 forward-thinking councils across the UK and we are thrilled to add Sheffield Council to this list. Enabling residents to have the best Internet experience goes a long way to bridging the digital divide.”

The deployment of this new network is expected to start across Sheffield’s social housing stock in the “coming months.” Hyperoptic’s network current covers over 400,000 UK premises and they’ve previously spoken of their desire to cover 2 million by the end of 2021 and then 5 million UK properties by the end of 2024.