Ofcom research has revealed that UK consumers have seen their average home broadband speed rise by 22 percent, from 6.2Mbit/s in November 2010 to 7.6Mbit/s in November 2011.

The communications regulator said the rise was due to more consumers opting for higher-speed packages.

But it warned that more than four in 10 consumers remain on packages with advertised speeds of 10Mbit/s or less, even though they would be able to receive a faster speed with little or no additional cost if they switched provider.

It said 58 percent of residential broadband connections had a headline speed of more than 10Mbit/s in November last year, up from 48 percent in May.

Ofcom chief executive Ed Richards said: "It is encouraging that speeds are increasing and that consumers have a real choice of broadband service.

"There is a real opportunity for consumers to look at the packages and deals in their area in order to receive the best value, speeds and performance available to them.

"We can look forward to further increases in UK broadband speeds over the next few years."