In early May 2025, industry media reported that UK altnet Freedom Fibre had begun cutting staff. For example, an ISPreview article dated 4 May 2025 noted that Freedom Fibre “has over the past week notified staff of more redundancies”. The exact number of job losses was not disclosed, but the report said a “good number of employees, mostly from [the] network build team,” were “put on notice of redundancy”. Affected staff began marking themselves as “#OpenToWork” on LinkedIn, posting that their roles were “at risk of redundancy”. Freedom Fibre did not publicly comment on the cuts despite media inquiries.
Scope and Timing of Layoffs
- Announcement Date: The cuts came to light in late April/early May 2025. An ISPreview UK article on 4 May 2025 reported that staff had been notified “over the past week”. (No formal press release was issued.)
- Number of Jobs: Freedom Fibre has not confirmed how many jobs are being cut. Media coverage simply refers to a “good number” of redundancies. Industry insiders on LinkedIn imply scores of engineering and field-build staff were affected.
- Effective Date: Notices were reportedly issued immediately, meaning layoffs would take effect in May 2025. (One employee post mentioned a “very long (6 months) redundancy process”, suggesting some consultation.)
Reasons Given for the Redundancies
- Lost Government Contract: Freedom Fibre had recently cancelled a major public-subsidy contract. In March 2025, Freedom Fibre “mutually agreed to terminate” a £43 million Project Gigabit broadband build for 15,000 rural premises in Cheshire. The company’s spokesperson called this a “difficult decision” meant to allow the operator to “focus on delivering high-quality fibre infrastructure in our priority areas”. Losing this gigabit contract (which carried no initial funding) removed a planned source of future revenue and work for the company.
- High Costs and Funding Pressures: Freedom Fibre, like other altnets, has been hit by rising build costs and financing challenges. ISPreview noted the operator faces “many of the same strains as other network builders, not least with respect to rising build costs, high interest rates (this also makes securing new funding more difficult) and competition”. In its latest filings (year to Nov 2023), Freedom Fibre showed revenues of only £623k (up 114%) on a £12.65 million loss. Such large losses indicate that the business was under significant financial strain.
- Strategic Refocusing: Observers suggest Freedom Fibre is shifting from rapid build-out to concentrating on its existing network and customer uptake. The company noted its 2023 accounts showed heavy CAPEX and a push for revenue growth, but now (with less new funding) it likely “may now be having to focus more of their efforts upon commercialisation (growing take-up) than build”. In other altnets, this pattern (completing build, then trimming workforce) is a common cause of layoffs.
Company Statements and Leadership Comments
Freedom Fibre has not formally announced the job cuts. The only recent company statements were about executive hires and network builds. Notably, the firm’s leadership offered no comment when asked about the redundancies. (Attempts by media to reach Freedom Fibre were “not answered,” likely due to timing.) The lone relevant company quote is from March 2025, when a Freedom Fibre spokesperson said withdrawing from the Cheshire gigabit project was “a difficult decision” that would let them “focus on delivering high-quality fibre infrastructure” in core areas. The CEO (Nathan Vautier) and founder (Neil McArthur, stepping into a board role) have made upbeat public statements elsewhere (e.g. on new COO hire and expansion), but none addressed the layoffs directly.
Reactions from Employees and Analysts
- Employees: Several engineers and field workers have publicly indicated they were affected. LinkedIn posts (e.g. one by a “Lead Fibre Engineer” at Freedom Fibre) explicitly stated “my job is at risk of redundancy” and announced they were #OpenToWork. No official employee union comment has appeared (Freedom Fibre’s staff are not unionized as far as public records show).
- Industry Analysts: Experts see the cuts as part of a wider trend. A Register article (citing a Neos Networks survey) notes nearly all UK altnets are struggling to raise funds and are considering mergers or new strategies. Neos Networks itself reported that 96% of altnets are now considering consolidation to survive, with half already looking at partnerships or M&A. Telecom analyst Paolo Pescatore (PP Foresight) commented that such consolidation is “unsurprising” and inevitable given the high build costs and competitive pressures. No one has disputed these general observations; the Freedom Fibre situation simply fits the pattern.
Industry Impact and Context
Freedom Fibre is one of several UK alt-nets shrinking in 2024–25. For comparison:
- Fibrus (Northern Ireland/UK) – A major altnet, recently admitted cutting ~48 jobs in its civil engineering arm. Management said this was due to nearing completion of its FTTP build in N. Ireland and rising costs (building costs, interest, supplier inflation).
- Hyperoptic (metro FTTP provider) – In mid-2023 it refocused strategy and proposed ~110 redundancies (about 5% of ~2,000 staff) to concentrate on high-demand urban areas.
- CityFibre and Zzoomm (large altnets) – Both announced major cuts in 2023: CityFibre cut up to 400 jobs (≈¼ of its workforce) and Zzoomm laid off ~300 (≈50%) in late 2023.
- Others: Rural ISP Broadway Partners went into administration in late 2023, and several smaller operators are reported to be restructuring or merging.
These developments suggest rollout headwinds. A recent industry report emphasized that many altnets are now financially stretched: roughly half cite “high interest rates” and investment uncertainty as barriers to funding. The UK government’s full-fibre rollout targets may be slowed if these operators pull back or consolidate. In sum, analysts warn that Freedom Fibre’s job cuts reflect sector-wide pressures (cost inflation, competing build subsidies, overbuild by incumbents) and underscore an industry pivot from aggressive expansion toward consolidation.
Sources: Company filings and industry news. The above is drawn from Freedom Fibre’s latest (Nov 2023) accounts, ISPreview’s May 2025 coverage of the layoffs, ISPreview and ThinkBroadband reports on the cancelled Project Gigabit contract, and analyses of the UK broadband sector.
