Cybermoor Hunt GBP150k to Build Fibre Optic Broadband in Northumberland

Cybermoor Networks has launched a new “community share offer” in order to help it raise the £150,000 needed in order to roll-out a new ultrafast Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTH/P) and fixed wireless broadband network around the South Tyne Valley in West Northumberland (England).

The Tyne Valley Broadband Scheme is one of seven pilot projects approved for funding by the Government’s Broadband Delivery UK programme, which has allocated £449,997 to the effort (here). Fibre optic cables are already being laid along part of an old railway track between Alston and Haltwhistle, but to go further the scheme needs to raise another £150k by 31st July 2015.

In order to achieve that Cybermoor Networks (co-operative) has established a share offer scheme, which enables people to invest from a minimum of £100 (with a three year commitment) and this is also eligible for a 30% tax rebate through the Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS).

Ed Vaizey, Digital Economy Minister, said:

“It’s great to see Cybermoor leading the way in rolling out superfast speeds to some of the UK’s most remote communities. The Community Share Offer will play an important role supporting the Government’s programme to extend superfast broadband to more homes and businesses, bringing forward new investment to support the development of this vital digital infrastructure in South Tyne Valley.

This community pledge scheme shows that communities can build their own fibre broadband networks using local people and finance.”

Apparently the target for this project is to pass around 300 premises and to connect as many as wish to be connected. Plus if you total up the investment and assume full take-up then it works out at around £2,000 per property, which isn’t cheap but we’ve seen far worse.

However £150,000 is a lot of money to find in the space of just two months and other community schemes have required longer than that in order to achieve such funding levels.