WORK has been completed to rollout ultrafast broadband to a village on the outskirts of Chester.

Virgin Media has updated the network in Saughall, which will provide 1,400 residents and businesses with the fastest widely available speeds in the UK.

As part of its ‘Project Lightning’ network expansion programme, Virgin Media is expanding its ultrafast broadband network across the UK, bringing average top speeds of 516Mbps to residents and small businesses.

This will help transform the quality of broadband in the area where the average (median) download speed is 39.1Mbps*.

The company is also bringing next generation gigabit broadband to its entire network of 15 million homes by the end of 2021 as part of its new Gig1 service.

Saughall residents and businesses will benefit from fibre to the premises (FTTP) technology which allows for smooth, reliable connectivity in the home. With a 516Mbps connection, files, films and games become unbelievably quick to stream, download and upload:

• Download a standard HD movie file (5GB) in less than a minute and a half, compared to nearly 18 minutes on the average local connection.

• Download a 25GB console game in seven minutes, compared to more than an hour and a half on the average local connection.

Paul Hutchinson, Virgin Media’s regional director for North West, said: “We know how important great broadband is to modern-day living so its great news for residents that they can now enjoy the benefits of our ultrafast broadband and entertainment services. Whether this is doing the weekly shop online, streaming the latest hit TV series or video calling family and friends, everything is possible on our network.”