MUCH of north Shropshire has missed out on an expansion of rural 4G coverage by network provider EE in the West Midlands.

Of 17 locations to be receive a boost across the region, only Llanyblodwel – outside Oswestry and on the Powys border – his on the list for north Shropshire, with Hodnet and Moreton Corbert – close to Wem – also set for a signal boost.

There are two other Shropshire locations – including Llanyblodwel and Hodnet – that are set for a signal boost in Leebotwood and Cleobury Mortimer.

Across the UK, a total of 579 locations are to benefit from the extended EE 4G coverage by the end of 2021 – 333 in England, 132 in Scotland, 76 in Wales, and 38 in Northern Ireland. All sites have been made available for other operators to share under the SRN scheme.

However, a spokesman said that this is just the start of the work to boost signals in rural Shropshire. 

A BT Group spokesperson said: “Alongside the upgrades through the Shared Rural Network programme, we continue to make substantial investment in our EE network across Shropshire, including in new rural sites.

"This will mean EE’s 4G coverage will continue to expand and improve across the county in the months and years ahead.”

Matt Warman, minister for Digital Infrastructure, said: "I'm delighted to see the great strides EE is making to boost 4G services in countryside communities as part of the Shared Rural Network agreement, which was brokered and is part funded by the government.

"We're investing half a billion pounds in this landmark deal to extend mobile coverage to 95 per cent of the UK and it will help us build back better from the pandemic."

Philip Jansen, chief executive of BT Group, added: “The investment BT has made in rural areas to date means we already have the infrastructure in place needed to extend our 4G coverage footprint further, minimising the number of new sites we need to build.

"There are many places where EE is the only provider with 4G coverage today, offering the other operators an opportunity to share our existing sites to plug gaps in their networks and improve mobile performance for everyone.”