GIGACLEAR IS TRANSFORMING RURAL COMMUNITIES

Successful rural broadband provider Gigaclear, which has its headquarters at Abingdon, is helping transform rural communities into the best digitally connected places in the country.

It is currently building a network across 22 counties from central England down to Devon. Gigaclear plans, designs and builds the infrastructure to deliver full fibre broadband and operate an ISP.

Backed by principal shareholder Infracapital, the company is working towards its goal of 500,000 connected properties by 2025, building with commercial investment in some areas, and with subsidy under the government’s Building Digital UK (BDUK) programme.

Gigaclear employs more than 300 people and has regional offices in Taunton, Essex and Gloucestershire. The business plans to increase the employee numbers in design, planning and delivery.

Livestock Technology Centre will boost agritech skills

Abingdon & Witney College has opened its new Livestock Technology Centre. The £1.9 million facility at Common Leys Farm, officially opened by Witney MP Robert Courts, will provide technology skills for young people keen to establish a career in the agriculture industry.

Nigel Tipple, Chief Executive of the Oxfordshire Local Enterprise Partnership, said: “Such a significant project will have a positive impact on the agri-tech sector, as well as supporting young people and their skills development.

“It also provides a real opportunity for Oxfordshire to continue to drive dynamic economic growth through this sector, locally and nationally.

“We are delighted to have secured such a significant Local Growth Fund allocation for this project and we are sure it can be real asset to Abingdon & Witney College’s future growth plans.”

Spirits of precision: gin distillery opens in Abingdon

Abingdon has its first gin distillery. Launched in the summer by partners, Ben Blackledge and Janice Hewitt, their first offering is a London Dry and the production process uses inventive techniques to extract the most flavour from the botanicals.

The couple decided to launch their business after Ben, who was based in Hong Kong and working as an airline pilot at the time, began to enjoy experimenting with botanicals brought back from around the world, using a tiny copper still.

Moving back to Abingdon, they found a busy town neglected by craft distilleries and took on the challenge themselves.

Abingdon Gin’s tagline, “Spirits of Precision”, refers to its precise approach to distillation and the logo plays on the chemical symbol for ethanol, a nod to Abingdon’s relationship with science and research.

Ben said: “Our distillery is the product of years dabbling in distilling with some tasty gins, and a few awful ones, along the way. Our aim is to put Abingdon on the gin map with the highest quality gin hand-crafted in small batches.”