Government funding for DIY rural broadband

A two-year government-funded initiative hopes to help rural communities set up their own broadband connections.

The Community Broadband Network (CBN) is due to launch in mid-November to help communities share information on DIY projects and help each other with the business aspects of such projects.

Set up by Ruralnet UK and The Phone Co-op, CBN will receive £130,000 of funding over two years from the Department of Trade and Industry and the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.

The aim of the network is to link successful rural activists and act as an exchange where rural communities can give and receive advice and learn from successful projects.

Simon Berry, CBN chief executive, said: "The network will have a collaborative function where people can interact and discuss projects. We hope that if it is successful it will continue beyond the two years."

Many areas are worried about setting up broadband in case it is not sustainable, said Nigel Ashcroft, project director of the actnow Cornwall broadband group.

"Small communities want sustainable broadband, not something that is an experiment and will only last for two years. We believe the public sector must work with the private sector and share some of the risks," he said.

The CBN hopes meetings between rural communities will be paid for by broadband providers.