BT includes Flintshire in 110Mbps fibre broadband rollout

BT has announced residents in the Flintshire town of Saltney will be the first in Wales to be connected to its new up to 110Mbps fibre optic broadband service.

The telecoms giant has revealed six exchanges will be upgraded before the end of October to begin offering ultra-fast fibre-to-the-home broadband.

One of the exchanges, South Chester, serves parts of Saltney, as well as Lache, Heronbridge and Handbridge. Exchanges at Ashford in Middlesex, Bradwell Abbey in Milton Keynes, Highams Park in north London, St Austell and York have also been included in the commercial launch of the service.

Ann Beynon, BT director for Wales, said the company is keen to ensure rural areas can access the fastest possible broadband speeds.

"We will be bidding for public funds to help extend these services even further," she insisted. "The challenge is a tough one but by working with the public sector it is within our reach."

The announcement comes just a matter of weeks after BT revealed another 15,000 homes and businesses across north Wales will be included in its latest fibre broadband deployment.