COLEFORD has become the first rural town in Gloucestershire to be able to sign up for faster internet access.

Fibre broadband is set to arrive in the town giving 5,000 residents and businesses the chance to experience much faster broadband speeds once the roll-out is completed in the coming months.

The world's loudest town crier, Alan Myatt of Gloucester, announced the arrival of the new technology.

The new network will be part of the £56.6 million Fastershire project, a partnership between Gloucestershire and Hereford county councils with BT. Additional funding has come from the government's broadband delivery UK programme.

Cinderford, Drybrook and Lydbrook are also expected to have access in the near future. You can check if fibre broadband is available in your area by logging onto http://www.fastershire.com">www.fastershire.com.

The leaders of Gloucestershire and the Forest of Dean councils joined Mr Myatt and BT's south-west regional manager Michael Dunn at the newly-enabled roadside cabinet at the clocktower in Coleford.

Gloucestershire County Council leader Cllr Mark Hawthorne said: "This is great news for Coleford. Faster broadband will give local people a wealth of new opportunities, whether in accessing local services or seeking out education and training opportunities. For businesses, it offers the potential to expand, create jobs, and work more efficiently.

"This is a fantastic milestone for the project and a sign of things to come across the more rural areas of the county."