Residents from a district of County Durham are demanding to be told which local communities will gain access to fibre optic broadband.

The area of Teesdale is set to be covered by a rollout project that is a partnership between Durham County Council and BT.

Locals have been assured that superfast connections will be introduced to 98 per cent of the region. However, the remaining two per cent equates to 6,100 properties and a residents group known as Teesdale Action Partnership are refusing to be kept in the dark about which properties will be included.

Chairman Simon Land told the Teesdale Mercury: "We’re pushing this issue because it is the future of Teesdale.”

Those who receive the upgrade will have access to speeds of up to 24Mbps, whereas those who are excluded will remain on the existing copper network, which provides speeds of around 2Mbps.

But with Ofcom regulations stating that information on specific premises cannot be revealed until installation work begins next year, it looks unlikely Teesdale Action Partnership will see its demands met.

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