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<p>Good progress has been made in the Stoke-on-Trent North constituency, with over
99% of premises in the constituency able to access superfast broadband. This is up
from 73% in March 2013. Gigabit-capable coverage in the constituency stands at 8%.</p><p>There
is an active Local Full Fibre Network Project (LFFN) taking place in Stoke-on-Trent
with around 110km of new fibre network being built with the aim of creating 100% city
wide full fibre connectivity. DCMS have invested over £9 million into this project
with a supplier also contributing. There is a video which gives an overview of this
Government funded project in Stoke here: <a href="https://vimeo.com/368247591" target="_blank">https://vimeo.com/368247591</a></p><p>On
top of that, 25 premises took advantage of our recently closed Gigabit Voucher Scheme
in the area.</p><p>For those premises that are still struggling with slow speeds,
there are a number of options available to them. DCMS runs another voucher scheme
that can be used by rural communities across the UK to reduce the cost of installing
gigabit-capable connectivity. This provides a voucher worth up to £3,500 for eligible
small businesses and vouchers worth up to £1,500 for residents. However, Staffordshire
County Council have recently committed to “top up” these voucher values investing
£1m of funding in addition to eligible funding from the Rural Gigabit Connectivity
Programme. This means that in rural areas of Staffordshire, residents can get a voucher
of up to £3,500 and small businesses a voucher of up to £5,500.</p>
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