United Living Group has been awarded a £30 million contract by CityFibre as part of a programme to roll out its full fibre network across the city of Sunderland.

A full fibre network in Sunderland is expected to transform the city, delivering key benefits to local businesses, such as enhanced cloud storage for business-critical data, more effective videoconferencing, and allowing colleagues to work effectively in an ever-digitalising economy. United Living will also hire local contractors to perform key services necessary to complete the project, helping to build sustainable partnerships locally. There will also be benefits for families and individuals, as full fibre delivers group calls, high-speed gaming, and flawless delivery of streaming services into people’s homes. The outsized performance of full fibre compared to broadband delivered via copper telephone lines can be attributed to having less interference and keeping signal strength over much greater distances allowing for a higher frequency rate.

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The works will see United Living lay fibre cable across the city starting in Hendon and Southwick wards, and complete aerial works in the area. The next areas earmarked for the rollout include Ryhope, Millfield and St. Michaels wards. Once the city-wide rollout reaches completion in 2025, almost every home and business locally will have access to full-fibre services from a choice of internet service providers including Vodafone, TalkTalk, and Zen, with other providers expected to join the network soon.

As the network is completed in each neighbourhood, CityFibre will designate the homes ‘ready for service’, which means residents can choose to connect to full fibre-enabled broadband services when they go live in their area. Residents interested in giving their home broadband a boost can find out more about the build, pre-register their interest and find out when new internet service providers join here.

Conor Bray, Chief Operating Officer, United Living Group commented: "We have been working with customers in the Northeast since 2005, maintaining the critical infrastructure and providing local jobs, so we are delighted to be part of this ongoing project to help increase productivity, innovation, and opportunities for the people of Sunderland through CityFibre’s full fibre rollout. Throughout the project, United Living will adhere to considerate constructor principles, and ensure that disruption throughout is minimised by utilising modern construction techniques. As an organisation, we know how important it is for individuals to have access to fast and reliable broadband services in an ever more digital world, and we look forward to everyone experiencing the benefits."