NEWPORT is among sites chosen to host a share of 250 new jobs as a tech firm invests billions of pounds.

Openreach has announced it will create and fill around 250 additional jobs across Wales during 2022 – including more than 200 apprenticeships – as it continues to invest billions of pounds into its UK broadband network, people and training.

The new recruits will be based across all parts of Wales, including Newport, as well as Denbighshire, Flintshire, Gwynedd, Powys, Pembrokeshire, Swansea and Cardiff.

The project is on track to reach 25 million UK homes and businesses by December 2026 and has already reached more than 425,000 properties in Wales.

The hiring spree is part of the largest recruitment drive in Openreach’s history - 4,000 new jobs are being created across the UK as a whole.

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With a workforce of around 2,300 across Wales, Openreach already employs the nation’s largest team of telecoms engineers and professionals and say they are committed to building a more diverse and inclusive team in an industry that’s traditionally been very white, male dominated.

Clive Selley, CEO, said: “Openreach is a people business first and foremost, so I’m proud that we’re continuing to invest heavily in our people, having hired and trained more than 8,000 new engineers over the last two years.

“We want to reflect the communities we serve and give opportunities to people from all backgrounds, so I’m encouraged that we’ve recruited more women and minority groups this year compared to last year, but we’ve got much more to do in an industry that hasn’t been very diverse historically”

Vaughan Gething, economy minister, said:“ I’m delighted to see more than 200 new, high-quality apprenticeships being created, providing invaluable opportunities for people from all sectors of society to start a rewarding career in engineering.”

Openreach also plans to retrain more than 3,000 of its existing engineers during the next year – changing their focus from fixing older, copper-based technologies to installing and maintaining faster, more reliable fibre connections.