Major broadband boost for over 60,000 rural homes and businesses in Yorkshire and Lincolnshire

Thousands of people across Yorkshire and Lincolnshire can now stream, work, study and stay connected more easily, as over 60,000 homes and businesses benefit from faster broadband backed by the UK Government’s Project Gigabit. 

It means more families in rural communities can make video calls without dropouts, more students can learn online, and more local firms can take payments, reach customers, and run their businesses without being held back by poor connectivity.

Winterton in North Lincolnshire, Fosdyke in Lincolnshire and Sessay and Linton on Ouse in Yorkshire are among the latest communities to benefit, with more villages, hamlets and rural homes being brought onto the network every week. 

The rollout is also creating opportunities beyond faster broadband. Quickline has supported more than 1,700 young people to learn more about skills and careers in Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM). The provider ran a series of STEM workshops in East Yorkshire for 80 Year 5 and year 6 pupils from Skirlaugh Primary School. The students were immersed in a range of activities designed to bring engineering and telecommunications to life. 

More than 130 people from Yorkshire and Lincolnshire have also gained hands-on experience through Quickline’s apprenticeship programme – all as a direct result of the £127 million the firm has received through Project Gigabit. 

Minister of State at the Department for Digital, Media, Culture and Sport, Ian Murray said:

Good broadband is about giving families, workers and local businesses the tools they need to get on, wherever they live. 

This milestone is proof that Project Gigabit has put better digital opportunities into local communities across Yorkshire and Lincolnshire that have had to work around patchy connections for too long – whether that’s running a business from a rural village or taking a job that would once have felt out of reach.

Mark Bowden, Quickline CEO:

At Quickline, we’ve always believed where you live shouldn’t determine the opportunities available to you. Through Project Gigabit, we’re proud to be working alongside the UK Government to bring gigabit-capable broadband to rural communities across Yorkshire and Lincolnshire. More than 60,000 homes and businesses can now access gigabit-capable broadband through our Project Gigabit rollout, while, in total, our full fibre network now reaches some 260,000 premises across Yorkshire and Lincolnshire. With many more communities set to benefit as we continue delivering our Project Gigabit contracts, we’re creating a network that will serve rural Britain for generations to come.

But our ambition has always gone beyond building a network. We want to leave every community stronger than we found it, whether that’s inspiring future careers through STEM education, tackling digital exclusion, connecting community hubs or supporting employability. Project Gigabit is about more than faster broadband – it’s about creating opportunities, reducing inequality and helping rural communities thrive for generations to come.

A North Lincolnshire family of five, including two keen gamers, say switching from a slow copper connection to Quickline’s full-fibre broadband transformed their internet experience, allowing them to stream, game and work from home simultaneously without slowdowns.  

After years of unreliable broadband, East Yorkshire resident Margaret says Quickline’s upgrade has transformed her ability to stay connected with friends and family, giving her a reliable service. 

Project Gigabit is bringing lightning-fast broadband to hard-to-reach communities across the UK. The programme has already helped upgrade more than 1.3 million premises across the UK through government support, largely in rural areas where gigabit coverage is lower.