A GEOGRAPHICALLY remote Eden town is to benefit from faster internet connections following last weekend's launch of high-speed fibre broadband.

Representatives from Connecting Cumbria, the partnership between Cumbria County Council and BT, joined Rory Stewart, MP for Penrith and the Borders, at the squadron headquarters of the Air Training Corps at Appleby Grammar School for the launch on Saturday.

And the cadets are one of the town's organisations set to benefit from the new technology which will help with the delivery of their online training programme.

Lt Col Mike Gerrish, who is the civilian chairman of the 2192 Appleby Squadron ATC, said: “A fast and reliable broadband service is essential to our modern training programme. The staff and the 30 cadets at the Appleby Squadron are delighted that our use of the online systems will be enhanced by the availability of superfast broadband."

Appleby Grammar School will also enjoy an uplift in its broadband and residents and businesses will be able to have far faster download and upload speeds if they switch to fibre.

Appleby now has two fibre-enabled cabinets up and running, meaning 591 households and businesses can benefit if they make the move onto a fibre-based internet service. A further eight fibre cabinets are due to be deployed in and around the town by summer 2015.

The investment in connecting the town to the fibre network will also benefit other communities along the A66 corridor which can tap into the new fibre connection. These include Kirkby Stephen, Kirkby Thore, Culgaith, Langwathby, Morland and Brough. Communities around Appleby such as Colby, Brampton and Great Asby will also benefit from fibre for years to come after it is delivered in 2015.

Elsewhere in Eden, Connecting Cumbria is building on the work done since the county’s first fibre cabinet went live in the village of Yanwath in October 2013. BT’s engineers will be working to deliver fibre to areas including Orton, Pooley Bridge, Shap and Glenridding in 2015.

Cllr David Southward, Cumbria County Council's Cabinet member responsible for economic development, lead member for Connecting Cumbria and ERDF funding, said: “Before Connecting Cumbria came along, Appleby was cut off from superfast broadband. It was too far from the main fibre network at Penrith and the commercial sector had decided that there weren’t enough customers to merit the cost of installing fibre all the way out there. This programme has changed all that. We’ve reached out and delivered a fibre lifeline into the heart of the town."

Rory Stewart, MP for Penrith and the Borders, said: "Eden is the country’s most sparsely populated district, with some of the most remote properties and challenging terrain for engineers to tackle. By installing a fibre connection to Appleby, Connecting Cumbria has laid down a main channel from which lots of other connections can be made. It presents exciting opportunities for businesses, home workers, health providers, families and lots of other community groups.”