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Abingdon-based alternative broadband ISP Gigaclear, which has deployed their full fibre (FTTP) network to cover 600,000 premises (mostly in remote rural parts of England), has today announced that they’ve appointed two new Directors to their board – Stephanie Liston, Chair of the Jersey Competition Regulatory Authority (JCRA), and Catherine Colloms, former Openreach executive.
The provider, which is home to a customer base of 150,000 (i.e. 25% take-up, with a goal of reaching 29% by the end of this financial year), said that the appointments of “two telecoms industry big hitters is testament to the company’s recent strong performance“. But the company has also suffered some recent job cuts (here and here), fuelled by a “re-focus on ultra-rural areas“ (e.g. Project Gigabit contracts), as well as pressures from high interest rates, rising build costs and the highly competitive environment etc.
Stephanie Liston joins Gigaclear having also chaired the Digital Connectivity Forum since March 2021 with a background as a senior lawyer with international experience in telecoms law and regulation. Meanwhile, Catherine Colloms was MD of Corporate Affairs & Brand at Openreach, where she helped lead the biggest transformation of the UK’s digital network in a century. Catherine currently holds a Non-Executive Director role on the Industrial Development Advisory Board within the UK’s Department for Business and Trade.
Nathan Rundle, Gigaclear CEO, said:
“I am excited about these new directors who undoubtedly bring vast and varied experience to Gigaclear. We have already achieved significant growth and Stephanie and Catherine will help us with our mission to remain the UK’s leading rural altnet.”
Stephanie and Catherine will assume their roles as Non-executive Directors at Gigaclear from 1st August 2025.