VILLAGERS have been left with no internet connection or phone lines for three weeks.

Some residents in Rampisham say they have not been connected since Friday, August 27.

The issue has affected 14 homes in the village and residents claim they have still received no word as to when the issue will be resolved.

The area affected is home to a number of elderly and retired residents and a family with a newborn baby, all of whom regard the use of a landline or internet as vital.

Although villagers have mobile phones, the coverage is limited.

Michael Casban, a resident of Codge Lane, said: "It's absolutely terrible, we can't seem to get answers from anybody. There's been no mention of when works might be carried out or when we might be able to get back online.

"My neighbour is worried sick. She is 84 and she lives by herself, her lifeline is connecting with other people. We live in a very rural area at least ten miles away from other towns so if she was ill for whatever reason she would have to use her phone for help. One family have a newborn baby and they are concerned if anything serious happens they can't get in touch with anybody.

"I work from home and I'm having to go to a community room to do work but I can't make any phone calls. I'm having to drive a few miles just to make calls on my mobile.

He added: "It's stupid, it's incredibly frustrating. 90 per cent of what I'm paying Sky for doesn't work - no broadband, phone or on-demand service, just the basic TV channels."

Mr Casban also claimed that a number of residents were told to be home on selected hours in the days after the connection first went out for workers to come to the street and no one appeared on the day.

He also said that most of the street had signed up for ultrafast fibre broadband less than a year prior.

Mr Casban added: "It will have been three weeks on Friday since we've been in this situation. It's appalling, it's as if they don't care at all.

"In 2021 with equipment which is only nine months old, there is no excuse for this sort of thing to be happening."

Openreach is responsible for broadband connections and phone lines.

The company has now confirmed that they have been waiting for approval to carry out the repair works, which has now been granted.

The works are set to begin on Monday, September 20 and expected to be completed by Friday, September 24.

An Openreach spokesperson said: “Our overhead fibre cable at Rampisham was damaged recently and we’ve received reports from 14 customers who have lost service. 

"We’ve been waiting for traffic management approval to get the repair work done safely, and this has been granted for 20 September. 

"We understand how frustrating this must be for anyone is affected and we’re really sorry that it’s taken longer than we’d like to repair. 

"We encourage anyone experiencing any disruption with their phone or broadband service to report it to their service provider who will then inform us."

The company has been contacted for comment.