1. The B4RN project Professor Barry Forde MBE FRSA Chief Executive B.Forde@b4rn.org.uk www.b4rn.org.uk

2. Our Ambition World class broadband – 1Gbs symmetrical (from day 1) – No distance degradation Future proofed – 10Gbs/100Gbs when/if needed – 50-70 year minimum life 100% of properties connected – Parish/community based – If the parish is in then every property in it is in! – No property too far or too expensive – No cherry picking, one for all, all for one! Affordable – £150 connection fee, £30/month (inc VAT) 16th June 2015Connected Britain2

3. Our Design Core - narrow bore HDPE 16mm/12mm duct – Can salami routes as necessary – Easily fixed if damaged in laying – Single or multiple ducts depending on need Spurs – 7mm duct, 2 fibres per property Use cross country routes, not highways – Much cheaper – Need wayleaves, is this a problem? Blow up to 192 fibre count cables = 96 properties – Or add second duct if more than 96 – Only blow fibre once duct finished, good for cash flow 16th June 2015Connected Britain3

4. B4RN Parish Node 16th June 2015Connected Britain4

5. External Connectivity Lease private dark fibre to Telecity Manchester (Zayo) – 128Km Single fibre Operate DWDM (SmartOptics) – 32 wavelengths each pair gives 10Gbs capacity – Add 10Gbs channels as demand warrants Peer at IX-Manchester Peer at LINX (Juniper LAN ) London IP Transit (M247) 16th June 2015Connected Britain5

6. QuernmoreAbbeysteadArkholme Dolphinholme WrayCapernwray NorthSouth Telecity Manchester 10 Gbps diverse routed links 32 x 10Gbps lambdas 621/1/14UKNOF27

7. 2011/2012 Plan 23 parishes ~3500 properties 420Km 2 7Connected Britain16th June 2015

8. Cost & Funding £3.5M needed to connect 3500 properties – ~£1K/property Raised by – Shares ~£1.3M raised via shares Number of members ~650 Still getting strong support – Loans ~£1.3M raised from community via loans Nearly all 5 or 10 year terms £300K raised outside community,5 year – Revenue as connections begin to generate positive cash flow – Grants Zero! 16th June 2015Connected Britain8

9. (Broadband 4 the Rural North) Industrial and Provident Society Act 1965 Company number IP31352R – Community Benefit Society – Similar to coop but answerable to community rather than our shareholders, more like a charity in some ways One member one vote, not related to number of shares member holds Asset lock 16th June 2015Connected Britain9

10. Shares Bought £100 - £100,000 max per person – FCA rule for IPS company Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS) – HMRC tax relief for investors – http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/eis – 30% of cost of shares, less any benefits – Between £500 and £100,000 – Carry back facility – Must be held for at least 3 years £1500 or more invested get connection fee waived – Amount eligible for EIS reduced by £150 to account for free connection 16th June 2015Connected Britain10

11. Shares Earned - “Sweat Equity” Piece rate for various jobs – E.g. 1metre of duct installed = £1.50 If landowner happy to do work across his land then pay him in shares? Helping community but effort rewarded when project has the money Do 1000m, get £1500 shares, get free connection Always give priority to local people who are prepared to do work for shares, then locals who need cash payment, finally as a last resort bring in external people 16th June 2015Connected Britain11

12. Construction 16th June 2015Connected Britain12

13. Project Milestones 330 Connections – Generates £100K income – Covers OPEX excluding labour so still dependant on volunteer effort 1000 connections – Generates £300K income – Covers OPEX including labour – May 2015 @ 1050 connections – 7 FTE staff employed, fully staffed – Volunteers can relax a bit! 16th June 2015Connected Britain13

14. Performance 16th June 2015Connected Britain14

15. Support 16th June 2015Connected Britain15

16. End Game >1000 connections – Begin to pay back investments and loans Based on 50% take up = 1750 properties – Estimate paid back by year 12 = 2024 Actually achieving 67% take up and climbing Also footprint growing, now 5000 properties and will probably hit 10000. Then what? – £750K - £1M free cash flow – Community Benefit society so two options Reduce monthly fee to just cover costs (~£15/month) Use cash for benefit of community! 16th June 2015Connected Britain16

17. Current Build Plan 16th June 2015 33 Parishes 504Km 2 4850 properties Connected Britain17

18. Thank you