A BID to bring superfast broadband to Northumberland has been submitted to the government.

Northumberland County Council has lodged a final bid with Broadband Delivery UK (BDUK), the government body which administers funding for the service, which would likely see the county given £7m towards improving speeds for internet users.

The county council has also submitted a Local Broadband Plan, with that having been required by BDUK as part of its bid. The project is seen as vital to the future economic prospects of Northumberland.

Parts of the county have the lowest levels of broadband usage in the UK, with estimates that there are more than one in five people who have still not used the internet.

In August last year, the government indicated it was willing to allocate £7m to Northumberland towards the costs of broadband improvements. The figure was conditional on the council contributing the same amount and agreeing to fund a long term improvement programme alongside a commercial partner.

The council has signalled its intention to meet these requirements and has set out an outline map for future improvements in its Local Broadband Plan.

The plan calls for a ‘whole county’ approach in developing and supporting innovative solutions to overcome some of the specific barriers faced in the county.

It emphasises the scale and cost of the challenge Northumberland faces because of its existing broadband infrastructure, relatively small population, large geographic area and difficult terrain.

The council has begun discussions with potential commercial partners and said these will be formalised later in the year.