Neighbours have FTTP, we have super slow ADSL

Hi! First time posting here, so apologies if I get terminology confused or just misunderstand something.

I've just moved into a property in Cambourne, Cambridgeshire and was amazed that there is only slow ADSL available to my flat despite Cambourne being a winning community in the 'Race to Infinity'. (I appreciate that there were build date criteria for this)

I could live with that, except surrounding properties on the same postcode, all built around the same time, already have FTTP and can get 300mbps from BT, compared to the roughly 2mbps I can get!

Here is a map that might help you to visualise the layout: https://drive.google.com/open?id=1hlUD_gjl3fvzyhAWFF...

Essentially, the red area is 3 blocks of flats and a single property over a couple of garages, which are all managed by one Property Management Company. I've spoken to the company and they are happy to consent to BT installing hardware to get people fibre connected. The green area can all get FTTP right now.

I've been trying to chase down a few bits of information regarding how we can get FTTP, but one thing that no-one has been able to answer from Openreach is why we weren't connected at the same time.

The Community Fibre Initiative has quoted around £10.5k to connect 24 properties. There were several red flags for me in the quotes which suggest some database errors (computer says no): Their first quote (which is computer generated) included a property that is already FTTP eligible - I'd only requested coverage for 23 properties, not 24.

Their second quote covered 39 properties, for only £9.5k (as the cost per head becomes better on Openreach's side) but the additional 15 properties already have FTTP too. I was told on the phone that the extra 24th property is because it's on the same distribution point as some of my requested properties. I assume that this is a copper DP that they're referring too.

Is £10k to run what I believe to be one fibre cable (as it could split to cover all the flats?) through existing ducting from the exchange (i.e. following the route of other FTTP cabling) before splitting it out to 3 buildings actually reasonable? I was told that it's the right ballpark for an initial estimate for 24 properties, but it's only 4 physical buildings all on a private courtyard facing each other, right behind FTTP connected properties.

I've started rambling and venting a bit, but essentially I'm trying to see if there's anyway of getting decent broadband without expecting £500 a head from rental tenants, or their landlords who most likely couldn't care less.

Thanks in advance!

This thread is potentially quite similar as this is also a lack of FTTP in Cambourne story: http://forums.thinkbroadband.com/fibre/4538198-cabin...

Without a time machine and lots of fly on the wall tech impossible to know for sure why not in the original roll-out, maybe landlord was approached and said no at the time.

The pricing is in the right ball park

Property management company who act on behalf of the freeholders and leaseholders don't have any record of being asked, but you could well be right.

That's disappointing re: the estimate. I was hoping that the fact it's only 4 buildings (one single dwelling, 3 multiple dwelling) and there's presumably ducting nearby for the rest of the connected properties would cause it to be considerably cheaper.

Why not do a deal with a neighbour to share their FTTP connection instead of getting your own? I'd expect that offering to pay half the monthly fee might be tempting for them.

Drop me a message here. We can take a look if need be. We have a fair bit of history with property in Cambourne (one of the first ISPs that got adsl there after the area was first moved to the Caxton exchange)

No promises but happy to look into it

Have you tried contacting Connecting Cambridgeshire.... what do they say (their website shows the two postcodes in your map as getting commercial coverage... somewhat useless or inaccurate as that appears to only be true for part of it).

That said I had a similar issue at my last address, where the local BDUK team said Openreach had told them they would deliver fibre commercially, and so it was off their radar. The fact Openreach hadn't delivered didn't seem to matter to them!

I guess Street View tells a 1000 words... as the area without FTTP is what looks to be a private road, accessed under the first floor of other properties. Therefore providing FTTP to these MDUs (which themselves have a different FTTP solution to the regular single dwelling units at the front) is no doubt a much more complicated affair and why it wasn't done initially.

Looking at the Copper DP information (extracted from the BT Home & Business site results) as well as the strreetview, there are 6x DPs serving the buildings lacking FTTP, as there's one for the FoG, and the left and righthand buildings have two entrances and two DPs each. Assuming that's replicated with fibre, it's therefore at least 6x DPs to be run in, and maybe an additional splitter. And I don't know how easy the in-building delivery would be.

PS. The cabinet is interesting.... slightly unusual location for a PCP (assuming it is PCP107, and not an SCP just for that private area?). But I can't see anything else around, apart from what is presumably P7 and its FTTC twin(see StreetView here) just across the other side of Broad Street, in De La Warr Way. And it looks like the MDUs on that side of Broad Street are served by this FTTC from PCP7, so no in-building works needed for them. To give you immediate relief, it's a shame Connecting Cambridgeshire didn't pick up on your area and may then have re-routed you from PCP (unlikely Openreach would ever do that otherwise), though FTTP would be best in the long run.

Thank you, will do

As in share Wi-Fi? Could work as a temporary fix. I'm in the rearmost building so might have to see which connections stretch that far.

Ideally I'd like a decent wired connection but I'll take what I can get

Whilst accessing someones existing wifi (with permission) is one way, there are many specialist point to point devices available that will allow you to send a "wifi" signal miles. As a starting point have a look here: https://www.broadbandbuyer.com/store/wifi-links/

If using equipment such as those suggested by olicuk you need to make sure that you have a clear line of sight between the AP radio (transmitter) and the Station radio (receiver) which means no other buildings, trees or bushes in the way and to clear the Fresnel zone.
I have fitted Ubiquity NBE-5AC-16 PtP products between two buildings and achieved the maximum throughput that the modem/router was able to transmit.