Report

Ofcom: Connected Nations 2021

Ofcom’s objectives include supporting investment in strong and secure networks, and getting everyone across the UK connected. In this annual Connected Nations report, Ofcom measure progress in the availability of broadband and mobile services in the UK, including the newest full fibre and 5G networks now being rolled out. It also highlights the work Ofcom are doing, alongside UK and devolved governments and communications companies, to improve these services.

What the report finds:

  • Full-fibre broadband is available to 8.2 million homes (28%). This is 3 million more premises (10 percentage points) than a year ago, and represents the highest year-on-year increase since full fibre started being rolled out in the UK.
  • Gigabit-capable broadband is available to 13.7 million homes (47%). This includes full-fibre and upgraded cable networks that are capable of delivering download speeds of 1 Gbit/s or higher.
  • The universal broadband service is helping some people in areas where decent broadband is not available. Factoring in coverage from both fixed and fixed-wireless networks, we estimate that around 123,000 homes and businesses (0.4%) are still without access to a decent broadband connection. These properties may be eligible for a connection under the universal service.
  • 5G rollout has continued at pace, with the number of mobile base stations providing 5G services more than doubling over the last year, to over 6,500 sites across the UK. 87% of these are in England, 8% in Scotland, 3% in Wales and 2% Northern Ireland. We estimate that 5G is available from at least one mobile network operator (MNO) outside 42-57% of premises.
  • Mobile coverage is generally stable. The four Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) – EE, O2, Three and Vodafone – each estimate they provide 4G outdoor coverage to c.99% of premises. Networks’ coverage of the UK landmass ranges from around 79% to around 86%. There has been
  • Networks have continued to perform well despite significant demands as people and businesses relied on their phone and broadband connections during further periods of lockdowns due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Average monthly data usage on fixed networks has increased to 453GB from 429GB last year, and from 315GB in 2019. Whilst peak usage remains in the evening, networks continued to see high demand during the day due to continued working from home.