2.4m homes connected to superfast broadband

BDUK has announced its superfast delivery scheme has reached 2.4 million homes, costing 301 million to date in local authority grants. However, the organisation revealed that its outgoings were actually 352,718,218 meaning it has cost 146 to connect each home.

BDUK said the costs were higher than outlined in the report because, "expenditure on an accruals basis is higher because work has been delivered in advance of payment."

The figures were revealed in BDUK's March Broadband Performance Indicator report, produced to measure the performance of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS).

The report only detailed areas where Next Generation Access (above 24 Mbps download) installed in BDUK-supported projects and excludes premises that already had superfast broadband available.

It explained: "These premises numbers therefore exclude premises which benefit from the BDUK-supported projects if their resulting speeds are below 24 Mbps, even if these benefits help meet BDUK's Universal Service Commitment to raise broadband speeds above 2 Mbps in project areas not achieving superfast speeds.

"They also exclude overspill effects of BDUK-supported projects on premises which already have superfast broadband available."

The newest figures show that broadband rollout has increased by 500,000 from the last report, which was revealed in December. BDUK hit the two million connected homes mark back in February. The last figures reflected a per-home connection cost of 132 property.

The government is still some way from connecting the final five per cent of properties in the UK to superfast broadband. In February, a report was released, urging BDUK to reveal its strategy for connecting the rest of the UK.

The report said: "We were concerned to hear BT tell us that the present target of 95 per cent of premises receiving superfast broadband by 2017 may slip.

"Broadband Delivery UK (BDUK) must make it clear that the target date must be met. A target date for when the last 5 per cent of premises will obtain access to superfast broadband coverage must be published."

Clare Hopping
Freelance writer

Clare is the founder of Blue Cactus Digital, a digital marketing company that helps ethical and sustainability-focused businesses grow their customer base.

Prior to becoming a marketer, Clare was a journalist, working at a range of mobile device-focused outlets including Know Your Mobile before moving into freelance life.

As a freelance writer, she drew on her expertise in mobility to write features and guides for ITPro, as well as regularly writing news stories on a wide range of topics.