St James the Greater in Torpoint becomes a free WiFi hub

A church and its hall on Salamanca Street have just been added to a growing list of Cornish community buildings running on some of the fastest broadband available.

St James the Greater Anglican Parish Church and Church Hall in Torpoint has become one of Wildanet’s Community Hubs, given a free 500Mbps full fibre broadband connection as part of the UK government’s Project Gigabit programme.

A well-used building gets an upgrade

The Church and Hall are busy venues, used by a wide range of local groups every month. On top of regular community activities, the hall is available to hire for birthday parties, meetings, exhibitions and clubs, giving people across Torpoint and the Rame Peninsula a flexible space to use.

The new connection will support reliable, high-speed WiFi for the groups and hirers who pass through the building. That means video calls and hybrid meetings, online learning and training, streamed content and presentations, and online bookings, alongside dependable connectivity for visitors, events and the everyday running of the Church and Hall.

“Providing free internet access gives more people access to something many take for granted”

Revd. Steve Guffick, Rector of Torpoint, said the upgrade extends what the building can offer.

“The new WiFi makes the space even more useful for people in Torpoint, while also supporting the day-to-day running of the church and our mission to make Jesus known to all,” he said.

“Reliable broadband makes a huge difference to the hirers and groups using the church building today, and helps us expand what we can offer the community in future. Providing free internet access gives more people access to something many take for granted, and we are pleased to be able to offer it here to help break down barriers.”

The connection has been made available free of charge to St James the Greater Church and Church Hall for an initial period of three years. It was delivered by Wildanet as part of its work bringing fast, reliable full fibre broadband to rural communities across Cornwall through Project Gigabit.

Part of a wider rollout

Julie-anne Sunderland, Chief People Officer at Wildanet, said the hub reflects the company’s wider aim of getting more people online.

“Helping people get online and make the most of the internet is an important part of supporting the communities we serve. By providing free full fibre WiFi at the Community Hub at St James the Greater Church, we are pleased to help more people in Torpoint access online services.

“There is already strong interest in Wildanet’s full fibre network locally, and the hub is a practical way to help ensure the benefits of faster, more reliable connectivity are shared more widely across the community.”

St James the Greater joins a list of previous Project Gigabit community hub installations that includes Praa Sands and District Community Hub, Godolphin Cross Community Association and St Keverne Parish Hall, with more sites set to follow. Wildanet currently has full fibre connection capability for over 1,500 homes and businesses in the area, with a rollout programme still under way. Postcode-level availability is listed on Wildanet’s website.

📷L-R: Councillor Julie Martin (Town Mayor), Julie-anne Sunderland (Chief People Officer at Wildanet), Revd. Steve Guffick (Rector of Torpoint)