Residents of Hempsted, a community approximately one mile from Gloucester city centre, are experiencing significant delays in receiving faster broadband services, leaving them “stranded on a digital island” with slow internet speeds. Around 200 households across 11 streets continue to rely on existing copper-based internet connections, with speeds typically ranging from 20 to 50 Mbps.
Local resident Lasse Thomsen highlighted frustration among community members, many of whom had anticipated improved services following direct communications from City Fibre in September 2023. The company had assured residents that fibre installation would begin soon, but work remains incomplete, with no fibre cables yet laid in the affected streets.
“They are not interested in completing their rollout anytime soon,” Mr Thomsen remarked, noting that while City Fibre has repaired pavements disturbed during earlier work, there has been no further progress on broadband upgrades.
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He acknowledged that Openreach has made some advances, particularly along Hempsted Lane where existing pole infrastructure has facilitated fibre installation. However, much of Hempsted remains without full fibre coverage.
Over the years, the primary obstacle cited for delays has been the difficulty in installing fibre cables over a local canal. Despite this, new housing developments in the area have been equipped with full fibre connections, indicating that technical challenges can be overcome.
Openreach has indicated that extending full fibre to all remaining streets in Hempsted is currently not economically viable without additional funding. Consequently, the original village area continues to endure disruptions from earlier building work without benefiting from improved broadband services.
The community is actively seeking to secure funding through the UK Government’s Building Digital UK (BDUK) gigabit broadband voucher scheme to support expanded full fibre deployment. However, they face a bureaucratic challenge: government datasets mistakenly classify these streets as already having full fibre planned by commercial providers, disqualifying them from voucher eligibility.
This misclassification creates a catch-22 situation where commercial providers are unwilling to proceed without funding, yet the government denies funding because it believes work is already scheduled.
Residents have raised their concerns with Openreach, City Fibre, and Gloucester’s Labour MP Alex McIntyre, who is involved in discussions to resolve the issue. Mr Thomsen emphasised the need for accurate government records to ensure Hempsted does not continue to be excluded while surrounding areas gain access to gigabit-speed broadband.
Additionally, residents noted that in February 2024, BDUK awarded Gloucestershire’s broadband contract to Gigaclear, yet Hempsted has received no communication regarding plans or timelines.
Openreach confirmed ongoing investments to extend full fibre broadband to numerous homes and businesses across Gloucester. Some streets, such as Waters Reach and Hilton Close, already have access to upgraded networks, with further expansions underway. They encourage residents to check availability through their online postcode checker.
City Fibre did not provide a comment when approached, and Gigaclear declined to respond.