Public Funding for Fast2Fibre Limited

The Covid-19 pandemic has highlighted the importance of digital inclusion, and households and indirectly businesses, have become even more dependent on broadband connectivity. Data traffic has risen quickly and whilst it's assumed that data usage will fade away as lockdown restrictions ease; however, businesses having seen that employees can work effectively from home are reviewing the potential to reduce their office estate and property overheads. Fibre to the Premises (FTTP)enables superfast \>30<300Mb and ultrafast \>300Mb connection and enables equality, diversity and inclusion as people can access information, government services, work remotely, order product, food and services all from home quickly and reliably. Working from home and the reduction in commuting can deliver environmental benefits especially emissions from cars and videoconferencing is shown to take at most 6.7% of the energy/carbon of a face to face meeting. FTTP is generally installed by slit trenching using a machine in rural areas or labour-intensive digging in urban centres. There are trenchless installation methods such as moleing; however, the impulse driven "mole" will penetrate and damage drains and building foundations. Slit trenching, damages tree roots, any unidentified buried utilities and requires road closures, permissions to dig and wayleaves which can delay installation by 1-2 years. Fast2Fibre is a leader in no-dig or trenchless fibre optic cable installation and proposes to commercialise the development of a new no-dig process it has invented which if successful will accelerate the installation of fibre optic broadband to the premises. Success also means that more users will receive the benefits of faster broadband promoting inclusivity and diversity and greater access to services and ability to work from home.