Grain expands fibre network as CityFibre hits gigabit roll-out accelerator

Momentum continues in the UK gigabit broadband sector as national altnet Grain has announced the latest areas to benefit from its full-fibre broadband network expansion, while CityFibre has signed a wayleave agreement to boost digital access for tenants in the Solihull area.

With an independent full-fibre network, Grain Connect’s mission is to deliver a dedicated fibre line to individual premises, guaranteeing high-speed, reliable broadband at low prices to challenge other providers across the UK. Moreover, the company is committed to providing a 1Gb-capable full-fibre network in a package that includes a fully UK-based customer service team along with fair contract terms and shorter contract lengths of 12 months.

Grain is also a partner to many of the country’s largest housebuilders, providing quality fibre-optic internet services to more than 100 new housing developments.

The first phase of Grain’s network roll-out will deliver full-fibre broadband to 400,000 premises as part of a £200m investment. The latest expansion brings Grain’s network to 43 towns and cities across the UK, where the provider has begun rolling out a full-fibre broadband service. The new build locations are in Birmingham Sparkbrook, Birmingham Bearwood, Burnley, Leicester Newfoundpool, the Anfield district of Liverpool, Luton, Abbey Hey in Manchester, Newcastle’s Benwell and Seaham.

“This £200m investment is a huge vote of confidence for our regional roll-out phases across the UK, and we can’t wait to bring superfast, reliable and affordable broadband packages to local communities,” said Grain Connect’s chief financial officer, Roland Barzegar.

“We recently introduced our Loyalty Price Promise, where at the end of their contract, we offer customers the opportunity to renew on the same monthly price we advertise to new customers on their street, showing that once you take out a contract with Grain, you will always have access to great pricing and your loyalty won’t be exploited. This is especially important to us now, with customers being impacted by the rising cost of living,” Barzegar added.

Meanwhile, CityFibre, the UK’s third-largest network provider, said the access it is being granted through wayleave agreements with the local authority in Solihull meant more than 4,000 tenant households would be given the opportunity to experience the benefits of the full-fibre network currently being rolled out across the town.

Via the blanket wayleave agreement, CityFibre said it would install full-fibre to every property, ensuring the network build can go ahead smoothly and tenants can access better connectivity simply and without delay. 

Across Solihull, CityFibre is investing £25m in delivering a town-wide network as part of its up to £4bn Gigabit City investment programme. The build is progressing at pace, with services now ready to go live in Shirley and Solihull central and builds set to get underway soon in Lyndon, Elmdon and Sill Hill.