Leading broadband provider BT has announced the locations set to benefit from the next wave of its next-generation broadband rollout.

Some 303 telephony exchanges across the UK are to be upgraded between autumn 2010 and summer 2011, as part of the latest stage of its £1.5 million infrastructure investment.

Among the major towns set to gain access to 40Mb broadband speeds are Guildford, Milton Keynes, Rochdale, York, Leamington Spa and Worcester.

However, consumers in London and the south-east are set to be the major beneficiaries of fibre-to-the-cabinet broadband (FTTC), with a combined 192 exchanges set to be upgraded over the next 18 months.

Locations in the Midlands and Yorkshire will also feature strongly in the next stage of the programme.

A BT spokesperson said the work will be "the latest chapter" in its long-term programme to make super-fast fibre-based broadband available to at least 40 per cent of the UK - the equivalent of around ten million homes - by summer 2012.

They stated: "Four million premises will have been connected by the end of 2010 in the largest single commercial investment in fibre-based broadband ever undertaken in the UK."

Commenting on the inclusion of his constituency in the upgrade programme, Worcester MP Mike Foster expressed his delight that the city had been chosen for enhanced web capabilities.

Speaking to the Worcester News, he stated that both resident consumers and local businesses will benefit from access to additional online services.

"This super-fast broadband will cover all of Worcester, which is the most important thing," he noted.

Since BT announced the first 29 locations selected for upgrades in March last year, it has selected a further 435 local telephone exchanges across the UK to support high-speed broadband.

Belfast, Cardiff, Edinburgh, Glasgow, London and Manchester were among the first wave of cities to be selected for FTTC and fibre-to-the premises broadband, but provincial towns and communities are increasingly being included in the plans.