Rural Fibre Broadband in the UK: What can you expect?

Rural communities have been long neglected by the larger broadband providers, and you may well be asking why is your rural broadband so slow? With low population density and more resources required to install cables, rural fibre-optic broadband has always been a lesser priority by some, if considered at all. 

Rural industries such as agricultural and farming sectors have suffered the most historically with weak, sometimes non-existent mobile signals as well as slow inadequate broadband speeds. Reliable, fast broadband is essential for these businesses who are constantly seeking ways to modernise farming in an increasingly tough and competitive climate. Activities such as attending online meetings with families, friends, suppliers and other businesses as well as managing online ordering, banking and upskilling are being hampered by the lack of connectivity and is a great deal of frustration for many farmers.    

The good news is that more fibre broadband cables are being laid to reach rural communities now than ever before.

Rural internet

If you live outside a town or city, then you may have experienced more than your fair share of challenges when it comes to your broadband connection. More often than not, your connection will be via the old copper phone cables, and your Internet speeds will be far slower than you need for modern use: video calls, on-demand TV, movie streaming services, gaming, music, accounting and more. 

There could be other options beyond your mainstream provider who can deliver exactly the service you need, and bring you into the 21st century in days rather than months.

Rural Broadband – Internet Providers

You can find a large number of familiar brands offering fibre broadband services, but the vast majority of these will be using the Openreach network of fibre cables running from central to local exchanges (usually in the nearest town). 

After much work, most regions now have fibre broadband cables to street cabinets in residential areas. However, many rural areas, especially those that are more remote, sadly still do not enjoy this connectivity. This results in a marked difference in rural internet speeds between fibre to the cabinet (FTTC) and standard broadband via copper cables (ADSL).

Internet Options For Rural Areas

ADSL is where the connection between the local exchange and the street cabinets is still using copper cables. You might expect download speeds of around 9-24MBps (megabytes per second) in a suburban street; in a rural setting this is likely to be much reduced. This is due to the distances between the exchange and the street cabinet, and then also to your home, and the way a signal degrades when travelling through metal. 

FTTC is where fibre optic lines have been installed up to the cabinet in the road. This offers a far faster option than ADSL, but with copper wires then connecting your property with the cabinet, your signal will still suffer from a lot of degradation from what it should be. People living near towns and cities can expect around 30-60MBps, depending on the time of day and number of users accessing the line. In the countryside, the speed can be a lot less, depending on the distance between your property and the cabinet. 

There is a third option for broadband

Full-fibre broadband FTTP which uses fibre optic cables, which use light pulses to send data instead of electricity, making your connection much faster (since it’s travelling at the speed of light). We install full-fibre broadband to connect communities in the South West and run it right into your home, unleashing the full power of the network. Unlike copper cabling, FTTP’s speeds are not limited and can reach up to 950 Mbps.

How To Get Internet In Rural Areas – FAQs

How to get broadband in rural areas

The answer to this will largely depend on your exact location, and how many people live nearby. If you are in a village with a few hundred homes, you should be getting a fibre connection to your exchange and street cabinets. If you live in a more modestly-sized hamlet, a small scattering of homes or in a single property away from a community, then it’s likely you’ll have to petition a supplier to help you out. It’s worth talking to Jurassic Fibre to see how they are helping people near you. 

Can I get full-fibre broadband where I live?

Full-fibre broadband is now available in many regions across the South-West, and we are still working hard to install the infrastructure in others. Is your home eligible for an ultrafast broadband upgrade?

Why get ultrafast broadband from Jurassic Fibre?

We live and work in the South-West region ourselves, so we understand the issues and excuses you have had to deal with from the main providers over the years. 

Businesses, communities and homes all over the South-West – whether they’re in urban or rural areas – should have the broadband they need and deserve. We’re building a multi-million-pound network to improve prospects for everyone in the region. 

You’ll also benefit from: 

• Local support – get looked after by a friendly local team
• No ties – take control with our 30-day rolling contracts

Sounds good?

Take the first step to getting an ultrafast full-fibre connection direct to your home. Use our postcode checker to see if our network is in your area right now. Alternatively, speak to our team on 01392 345600, lines open from 9am to 6pm Monday to Friday or Saturday 10am to 4pm.