FROM THE INDUSTRY
The company has expanded its network, working with Nokia on a new “Type B” project to cover more of the county. Wildanet has also become a B Corporation, embedding sustainability and social responsibility into its operations. The company’s broadband rollout, supported by the government’s Project Gigabit programme has been transformative for the Cornish economy. And a lot more besides. Broadband Journal caught up with CEO Helen Wylde- Archibald to find out more. You’ve done incredibly well with awards this year, congratulations Helen. How do you feel and what does the future hold for Wildanet? This year we won two really big awards that we’re really proud of. The Best Rural Fibre Provider at the Fibre Awards - that’s what we do. Our new chief operating officer Alastair Woods specialises in rural, and he’s been absolutely transformational, helping us speed up what we want to do more quickly as we move through the county; it’s been really positive for us. Cornwall is rather different of course. There are only just over half a million souls in Cornwall, so we really have to work at it. It’s so different to what’s going on in the city, where you can connect hundreds of homes a day, especially where you have blocks of flats in which there might be up to 1,000 people you’re able to connect at once.
What did that mean to you? Of all the things that I’ve ever won in my career, I have to say, that was probably the most significant. We try incredibly hard to do the right thing; we’re a B Corp, which is often referred to as the ‘fairtrade of business’. To receive that sort of acknowledgement amongst all the networks out there, including the big players was just a remarkable moment for us. I was in shock that whole evening. And what’s happening now? We’re now working with Nokia on our Type B (a Project Gigabit Contract for Cornwall). In this case our Type B is the size of our two Type As put together. They tend to be a bit more geographically spread. If you imagine Cornwall in tiger stripes, we had the far west end and we had the middle, but we didn’t have the two bits in between. This gives us the rest to go at, plus the Isles of Scilly. For a rural county with government funding for Project Gigabit, the whole county benefits. In Cornwall we need to be able to attract jobs and companies to the area, things like defence jobs, sustainable farming, agri-tech as well as offshore wind power. How did Nokia get involved? We’ve always had a great working relationship with Nokia, who offered a turnkey solution. Most of their beliefs and ideals match up with our own in terms of wanting to be sustainable, how we work with people, plus they embrace the fact we’re a B Corp, we want to employ locally. All together we provide a one-stop shop so that we can move quickly through the Type B with a trusted partner. Our suppliers and contractors can continue to work under that Type B arrangement, so nobody loses out. It also makes us a Nokia network going forward. Their planning, surveying, warehousing, materials have all been absolutely stunning too. It’s been a great experience and it is completely new in the industry, and the first time that Nokia has done anything like this in the UK.
Tell me about the second award.
That was the Broadband Provider of the Year Award at the 2024 Connected Britain Awards; we didn’t expect to win anything and were thrilled to have been recognised. I’d actually spent a day on my feet in high heels and I’d kicked my shoes off. Of course, we get the announcement and then I’m struggling to find my shoes! It was a very special moment for all of us at Wildanet.
DECEMBER 2024 Volume 46 No.4
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