糖心vlog会员’s research empowered the Wray community to build and operate their own networks, expanding home broadband within Wray and to the neighbouring area of Wennington. The Wray Broadband Project won the Queens Anniversary Prize and the EPSRC Telling Tales of Engagement Award, acknowledging its significant economic and social impact on rural communities in the North West.
The ‘Wray Broadband Project’ laid the groundwork for the 2013 establishment of the community initiative B4RN (Broadband for the Rural North), demonstrating the feasibility of delivering high-speed broadband to rural areas in the North West. By 2022, B4RN’s impact had been substantial, deploying 5 million metres of fibre cable over 3,500 square kilometres across more than 90 communities in the North West. It has connected over 12,000 properties, with plans to expand into Northumberland and County Durham in the North East of England. This multi-million-pound enterprise, supported by 2,300 shareholders and 5,000 community investors, has generated over £5 million in external investment and generated a net income of over £2 million in 2019-20, significantly boosting the social and economic landscape of these rural areas.
Chris Condor MBE, co-founder of B4RN, recognised the crucial role of Professor Race and his team, stating that ’none of this [B4RN’s success] would have been possible without Professor Race and his team.’ B4RN has increased investment attractiveness in rural communities and businesses, enabled home working through the pandemic and beyond, and partnered with Zykel Communications in
April 2020 to bring ultra-fast broadband to 21 primary schools, significantly benefiting education during the pandemic. As one parent remarked, ’our B4RN connection was activated part way through lock down…we physically would not have been able to do these [video literacy lessons] on the previous connection.’
Healthcare in rural areas also improved with broadband access, allowing patients to access online information, attend video consultations, and obtain prescriptions online. This capability was crucial during the COVID-19 pandemic and remains important. Healthcare professionals can access the latest medical publications, enhancing their ability to provide high quality services.
B4RN has also enabled vulnerable people to remain in touch with family and friends, alleviating loneliness and building a sense of community. During the COVID-19 pandemic, B4RN facilitated volunteer support networks in isolated rural areas. In Clapham, a remote village in the Forest of Bowland with an elderly population, improved connectivity enabled the formation of 'Clapham Cobra', a volunteer group that shared information, delivered supplies, and checked on vulnerable residents, helping to reduce the effects of isolation.
B4RN’s impact extends beyond the homes it connects. Its series of ‘show and tell days’ has inspired many other projects in the UK which use the B4RN model, such as B4RNI (Broadband for Rural Northern Ireland). B4RN’s impact also reaches beyond the UK, with the European Commission highlighting B4RN as an example of best practice in 2020, influencing rural broadband policy internationally as well as in the UK.