Gov Launch £3.5m UK Rural Broadband Trials of Hybrid Networks

The UK Government (DSIT, UK Space Agency) has today announced the launch of a new £3.5m “Very Hard to Reach Programme“, which will conduct three projects that seek to use hybrid networks (e.g. a mix of satellite, fixed wireless and 5G/6G mobile technologies) to help improve broadband connectivity in remote rural areas.

At present a little over 85% of UK premises can already access gigabit-capable broadband services via a fixed line connection (usually FTTP or Hybrid Fibre Coax), which is largely thanks to commercial deployments. The government’s existing £5bn Project Gigabit scheme (around £2bn of this has yet to be used) is similarly working to help lift this up to deliver “nationwide” (c.99%) coverage by 2030.

However, it’s long been recognised that some of the premises in that final 1% will simply be far too expensive for even Project Gigabit to upgrade, which is why both the past and present governments have been busy exploring alternative networking solutions to help resolve the issue of “very hard to reach” areas.

As part of this, the government has today published a new call for expressions of interest in delivering future satellite services for very hard to reach areas, which will see DSIT and the UK Space Agency working alongside the European Space Agency’s (ESA) Advanced Research in Telecommunications Systems (ARTES) programme. The call is focussed on three different projects (these must include an element of match funding):

The Three Rural Broadband Projects

1. Nomadic Multi-orbit User Terminal Demonstrator (UK funding limit – up to £500,000)
2. Papa Stour Service Demonstrator (UK funding limit – up to £1 million)
3. Rathlin Island Service Demonstrator (UK funding limit – up to £2 million)

The first project aims to provide portable gigabit-capable internet speeds, with satellite (LEO/GEO) terminals designed to be mounted on vehicles to improve connectivity for users such as local authorities, farmers, emergency services, and the events and hospitality sector. In two specific rural and remote islands in Shetland (Papa Stour) and Northern Ireland (Rathlin Island), two other projects will test hybrid networks to see if they could be used to support further locations unable to connect to traditional networks.

In case anybody has forgotten, Papa Stour was also the site of another very similar rural satellite and wireless broadband trial involving OneWeb’s LEO satellites and Clarus Networks during 2023, under the previous government (here). The new project similarly proposes testing a hybrid satellite-wireless solution using LEO and GEO terminals to boost connectivity for both residents and tourists, with distribution being handled by a wireless network on a “whole community” basis, without needing many on-site personnel to sustain it.

Chris Bryant, UK Telecoms Minister, said:

“Digital infrastructure is essential for our modern way of life. But for too long, many businesses and communities have felt left behind.

This is why we must do whatever it takes to ensure we harness technological innovation to enrich people’s lives and tackle exclusion, rather than entrench existing inequalities. These pilots, for instance, will help shape the next generation of connectivity, using a combination of satellite technology and mobile networks to test innovative new services that could be a real game-changer for remote and rural communities.”

The government contends that, by integrating advanced space technologies and addressing local challenges, these projects have the “potential to significantly enhance connectivity, boost economic growth, and improve the quality of life for residents in some of the UK’s most isolated regions“. This is true.

However, we’ve now seen quite a few projects and trials like this over the past 2-3 years, yet very little has emerged in the way of a cohesive programme to help make such alternative solutions readily available for more locations – as demand requires.

A Webinar will be held with interested parties at 11am on Thursday 5th December 2024 to explain further details around the call and application process. The call for expressions of interest itself is due to close at midday on Friday 31st January 2025 and the UK Space Agency aims to notify all applicants of the results of their expressions by the week commencing Monday 10th February 2025. But the rest of us won’t learn the final outcome until the week commencing Monday 17th April 2025.