An East Anglian town is more than 90pc connected to ultra-fast broadband following a push to get the region more connected.

The vast majority of the work to get Bungay onto Openreach’s broadband network has been done, meaning businesses and residents can begin using it as they come out of lockdown.

Engineers have now installed 100km of fibre cables to provide more than 3,000 local homes and businesses with full fibre broadband.

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Bungay mayor Bob Prior said: “Full fibre is great news for Bungay. It’s so much faster, more reliable and you’ll all know that your internet service will be able to handle anything you throw at it for decades to come – great reassurance for people looking to buy property or locate a business.”

Building the new network in Bungay is a “complex and time-consuming task” Openreach has said, and will have taken the best part of 12 months to complete by the time the final premises are connected.

Engineers are using existing infrastructure – like telephone poles - wherever possible to minimise disruption.

Work is also taking place in 14 other market towns and villages across East Anglia including Ditchingham, Earsham, Attleborough, Besthorpe, Caister-on-Sea, Dereham, Downham Market, Great Ellingham, Hunstanton, Kings Lynn, Toftwood, Watton and Wymondham.

Openreach’s regional partnership director Laura Whelan said: “We’re making incredible progress in Bungay, and our build has continued despite the obvious challenges of recent months. Local people were really interested in our fibre roadshow, and we continue to encourage everyone to upgrade to the new technology and take advantage of the many benefits.

“We still have a bit more work to do so people living in Bungay will continue to see our engineers working in and around the town for a little while yet. We know this will have a huge positive influence, making Bungay one of the best connected areas in the UK. Moving forward, we’re really keen to hear how people are using the new full fibre network and the difference it makes to their everyday lives.”