Next generation broadband in Kirkwall

More than 1,200 homes and businesses in Kirkwall can now order next generation fibre broadband, according to the Digital Scotland public-private partnership.

This, they say, is just the start of roll-out in the area, with services coming soon for around another 550 premises in the town.

Partner representatives were in Kirkwall to announce that work during the next six months will connect more people in the town, plus other areas across the Mainland and into Burray and South Ronaldsay.

BT engineers will be building local networks to bring fibre broadband to areas in Burray, Deerness, Evie, Finstown, Harray, Holm, and St Margaret’s Hope. As already announced, work will continue for Stromness.

Highlands and Islands Enterprise’s director of digital, Stuart Robertson, and director of BT Scotland, Brendan Dick, were joined by MSP Liam McArthur and Steven Heddle, convener of Orkney Islands Council at the Cromwell Drive yesterday – one of the areas already taking orders for fibre based broadband, with speeds up to 80Mbps.

Funded by the Scottish Government, Broadband Delivery UK, HIE and private partners BT, the project aims to increase access to fibre based services from the 21 per cent which would have seen rollout commercially to 84 per cent of premises in the Highlands and Islands.