Hundreds of West Yorkshire pupils receive free book thanks to Quickline
7 February 2025
Hundreds of primary school pupils across West Yorkshire are receiving free copies of a brand-new children’s book, thanks to a donation from rural broadband provider Quickline Communications.
Cones and Rural Broadband, commissioned by Quickline and written by author Chris Madeley, is the latest in a series involving animated traffic cones that come to life to explore the world around them. The book introduces young readers to the world of broadband while reinforcing important health and safety messages.
The first copies were handed out at a special event at the University of Bradford, where Lord Mayor of Bradford, Councillor Beverley Mullaney, joined around 100 pupils and teachers from eight West Yorkshire schools to celebrate the launch.
Author, Chris Madeley, commented: “The real purpose behind the Cones book series is to show children opportunities available to them when they grow up, teach them about different industries and careers and to get them engaged.
“I thoroughly enjoyed working with Quickline on this book explaining the importance of rural connectivity and it’s been really interesting finding out for myself about the technology and explaining it in a way that children will understand.”
Lord Mayor of Bradford, Councillor Mullaney said: “I’m delighted that the latest instalment of this wonderful educational book series has been launched in Bradford. I hope the children enjoy reading this book and the others in the series and finding out about the different industries and the importance of safety by following the adventures of the cone characters in the books.”
Sean Royce, CEO at Quickline, added: “We’re delighted to support primary schools across Yorkshire with this donation. The books are a fun and engaging way for young people to learn about broadband and safety, while also sparking an interest in the telecommunications industry.
"At Quickline, we believe in leaving a lasting legacy in the communities we serve. By mixing the best of both worlds – reading books and using digital tools – we can help our young people to learn, create and imagine the future.
“I’d like to thank everyone involved in this fantastic project for helping us get these books into the hands of local children.”
Quickline broadband is already available to communities across West Yorkshire, and the provider is currently rolling out their full fibre broadband to more than 28,000 further homes and businesses in the region as part of the Project Gigabit contract they were awarded in 2024.
Project Gigabit is the UK government’s rollout of lightning-fast, reliable broadband across the UK. The programme targets homes and businesses that are not included in the commercial plans of broadband companies, reaching parts of the country that would otherwise miss out.
As one of the biggest Project Gigabit regional delivery partners, with contracts totalling around £300m of public subsidy, Quickline is also playing a leading role in closing the digital divide which exists between urban and rural areas.
