SMALL and medium sized businesses are being urged to get connected to superfast broadband more cheaply.

Firms, along with third sector organisations, are being urged to take advantage of a government Connection Voucher Scheme.

Businesses can apply for vouchers worth between £100 and £3,000 to cover the cost of connecting to a better broadband service.

The Bournemouth City Region– defined as anywhere with a BH or DT postcode – was among 50 locations chosen by the government for the initiative.

Adrian Trevett, economic development manager at the Borough of Poole, said: “This is a great opportunity for local businesses to take advantage of the latest broadband technology.

“This new scheme is likely to drive economic growth locally by improving business productivity and helping businesses increase mobile-commerce, so we would encourage businesses to see how this scheme could help them.”

Businesses from across Poole, Bournemouth and Dorset are eligible to apply. The scheme is available until 31 March 2016 and vouchers are awarded on a first-come, first-served basis.

Westbourne-based internet service provider C4L said the scheme followed the recent Tech Nation report, which said Bournemouth was the fastest-growing area in the country for digital businesses.

Matt Hawkins, chairman and founder of C4L, said: “As the largest ISP in the region and the main infrastructure provider for Dorset, C4L are dedicated to providing the fastest connectivity possible to the region.

"We have already deployed huge connectivity infrastructure at our data centre based in the heart of Bournemouth, linking local businesses with the global internet, and we are aiming to link them to incredible speeds.

“This government supported initiative allows us to extend our high performance network directly into Dorset enterprises. In many cases the connection voucher covers the setup costs entirely, effectively removing the barriers to the service.

“Too many businesses are running on domestic grade services. I am looking forward to empowering them with business calibre connectivity, so that they are better able to operate effectively and competitively. My aim is to provide all Dorset businesses with ultrafast internet speeds as the norm.”