A full-fibre network for the future
We took time and care when building our network, ensuring plenty of advantages to every single community we connected.
How we planned our network
When we planned our network, we aimed to connect poorly-served communities with our ultrafast full-fibre. Our mission was to connect as many of these poorly-served areas as we could, which is why we chose not to build our network in areas that already benefited from full-fibre connectivity.
Our full-fibre network is brand-new. That’s why we planned our builds carefully to make sure we minimised disruption, while working as quickly as possible. During the planning stage of our builds, our Access team always made sure to arrange access with any private landowners well before we began our build.
Once planned, the access team arranged all of the necessary access needed for us to start building with local councils, landowners and landlords. Our planning teams then worked with local contractors to prepare the area for any upcoming work.
However, there were sometimes barriers, such as a lack of access agreements, which unfortunately prevented us from building the network in certain areas; barriers that sometimes simply can’t be overcome. When this is the case, we’re left with no choice but to move on to our next project.
How we built our network
Each new area we connected presented its own set of challenges. We always tried to use the area’s existing infrastructure (such as ducts and telephone poles, where applicable) to install your community’s new full-fibre network. This way, we were able to minimise the disruption caused by installing poles or digging new ducts of our own.
Though disruption was impossible to avoid when we did have to build the infrastructure ourselves, our experienced teams and local contractors tried to keep it to a minimum and always worked within the legislation of installations in the public highways (as outlined in the Highways Act 1980).
We’re a truly local business – one that provides a valuable service to the communities we connect. That’s why we use local contractors for all our building works, alongside local people who work directly for us. As a result, every team involved in the entire build and planning process is made up of local people who live in (and love) the areas we connect.
We also worked closely with local landowners when planning our routes to identify any alternative pathways to minimise disruption even further, and to ensure we were able to connect your community to its new network as quickly as possible.
Who’s backing our network?
Our network is backed by significant investment from private funds and investors.
When we started to roll out our network in 2015, we built to poorly-served communities that registered interest in our services. As our business and network expanded, new sources of investment came on board, which meant we were able to accelerate our network build and bring gigabit-capable broadband to semi-rural and ultra-rural areas – as well as towns and cities throughout the South West. This investment allowed our network to grow to over 112,000 properties.
