Research and analysis

Quality and methodology information (QMI): Shared Rural Network 

Published 24 December 2025

1. About this report

This document supports Shared Rural Network (SRN) data releases, providing information on how coverage figures were generated.

The SRN is designed to improve mobile coverage and boost connectivity across the UK. It is jointly funded by the Government and the UK’s four mobile network operators (EE, Three, VMO2 and Vodafone), with the objective of delivering 4G coverage to 95% of the UK by December 2025. The programme will also improve coverage for an additional 280,000 premises and 16,000 kilometres of roads.

This quality and methodology information report contains information on the quality characteristics of the data as well as the methods used to create it.

This report will help you to:

• understand the strengths and limitations of the data
• understand the methods used to create the data
• decide suitable uses for the data
• reduce the risk of misusing data

2. Contact

Organisation unit: Building Digital UK (BDUK)’s Analysis and Evaluation Function
Author: Seán Duffy, Senior Evaluation Analyst
Email: analysis@bduk.gov.uk

Please contact us at the above email with any questions or suggestions for improvements.

3. Data and methods information

3.1 Data description

The data is used to produce BDUK’s SRN reporting, which presents how many premises, roads and other relevant locations in the UK are forecasted to receive 4G uplift from the SRN as a result of BDUK subsidy.

3.2 Source data

We use a range of source data to produce these statistics. Further detail on management information sources for delivery data can be found in “Data collection”.

BDUK uses 4G mobile uplift forecasts for both the Total Not Spot (TNS) and Emergency Area Services (EAS) programme which are submitted by MOVA – an entity tasked with delivering the SRN that is wholly owned by EE, Virgin Media O2 and VodafoneThree – to BDUK as requested.

For TNS, these radio maps involve MOVA combining the forecasted coverage of all four mobile network operators – EE, Three, VM02, and Vodafone. For the EAS, only the three operators partaking in the project are included – Three, VM02, and Vodafone.

MOVA combines the forecasted coverage from the individual operators into a combined coverage plot or forecast. This forecast is ‘bounded’ by removing predicted future coverage uplift from other sources to isolate the unique coverage of the TNS or EAS. Forecasts are broken down into 100m x 100m pixels referenced against the Ordnance Survey Great Britain (OSGB) grid system. These forecasts are future looking and represent the operators and MOVA’s projections of the isolated uplift associated with both TNS and EAS.

BDUK uses a range of other geographic data in combination with these forecasts, including urban/rural postcode, and administrative area lookups from:

• Office for National Statistics (ONS)
• Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency (NISRA)
• Scottish Government
• AddressBase Premium
• Ofcom
• Other Ordnance Survey data
• data.gov.uk
• Renewable Energy Planning Database

3.3 Statistical unit

Premises – A Unique Property Reference Number (UPRN) is the unique identifier for an addressable location, used interchangeably with “premises”. This unique number does not change over time. Additionally, premises are grouped into different UPRN Classifications, sourced from OS and other datasets. High-level classifications include Residential, Commercial, Dual Use, Commercial Agriculture, etc – and granular classifications include Farms, Retail, Office, Medical, Education, Leisure, Hotel, Horticulture, Rescue Service, and numerous others. For the purposes of SRN analysis, these classifications are often rolled up into Residential or Commercial.

Roads – The UK government makes data on the national road network publicly available. In this dataset, roads are represented as line segments, and these segments are joined together to form a national network. The network is represented as a geographic shape file, against which calculations can be performed – for example, the length of a given set of roads (in metres), or the length of road that falls within a particular area.

The dataset can be found at the Ordnance Survey’s website here, or at the data.gov.uk website here. For each road it contains the type of road, its length, a unique identifier, a start and end point, and in some cases indicators of whether it’s a trunk road or primary road, etc. For the main analysis, BDUK considers the length of the road and the geographical area that it traverses, for example, whether it crosses / intersects with a pixel of mobile coverage.

Sustainable Infrastructure – The renewable energy planning database lists renewable energy projects over 150kW in the UK both in planning and operational. There are a variety of categories of sustainable energy accounted for including hydro, solar and wind. More information on the database can be found here.

3.4 Statistical population

Data on UK premises originates from the Ordnance Survey, who own a “PremiseBase” containing all premises in the country. From that starting point, Ofcom, in the process of producing their Connected Nations reports, further refine the dataset on the basis of certain criteria. For example, it removes premises that are non-postal, provisional, not in use, and so forth. The methodology can be found on page three of this methodology document.

BDUK follows a similar methodology in producing the premises dataset that is used for its statistical tracking and reporting. Unlike in the case of roads, the list of national premises is actively maintained and curated within BDUK’s cloud, so that it is accessible at all times. One version of this dataset is called premises_master, and another, which additionally contains data on BDUK past and future delivery, is referred to as LiveView, which underpins a live dashboard of the same name.

3.5 Reference area

The geographic region covered by the data is the United Kingdom (UK), specifically the United Kingdom landmass.

3.6 Time coverage

Data covers the period between 04 April 2024 to forecasted completion of the Total Not Spot Project in January 2027. Delivery of 4G uplift commenced under the SRN programme in 2020 under the Partial Not Spot project, but we have focussed on the Government funded elements of the programme which commenced uplift in 2024.

3.7 Data collection

Management information relating to the activation dates of sites is considered for both the EAS and TNS projects.

TNS management information is submitted by MOVA on a monthly basis to BDUK. This milestone information details the activation dates of each site once it goes live.

EAS management information is submitted by MOVA on monthly basis. This milestone information similarly details the activation dates of each site once live.

3.8 Data validation

A validation process of generated statistics is undertaken through consultations with MOVA, the producers of the pixel map forecasts. MOVA complete similar processes for the planning and management of the SRN programme.

3.9 Classification systems

Premises are classified as residential, commercial, or other based on the Epoch version of the AddressBase Premium dataset from the Ordnance Survey that corresponds to the date on which the premises received forecasted uplift as part of BDUK subsidy.

The OS Open Roads dataset provides a number of attributes for each road segment, including the type or function of the road in question. In this respect the UK’s roads are classified as either: A Road, B Road, Local Access Road, Local Road, Minor Road, Motorway, Restricted Local Access Road, or Secondary Access Road. For the purposes of BDUK’s analysis, all “access” roads are disregarded; this is in keeping with the benefits model produced by the Digital Infrastructure team within DSIT.

3.10 Statistical concepts and definitions

• Premises uplifted – a UPRN that is forecasted to receive uplift from a BDUK subsidised 4G mast. This uplift is expected to be coverage outside the home.
• Roads uplifted – length of A Road, B Road, Local Road, Minor Road or Motorway – that is forecasted to receive uplift from a BDUK subsidised 4G mast.
• Sustainable Energy Infrastructure uplifted – renewable electricity projects over 150kW (active or in planning) that is forecasted to receive uplift from a BDUK subsidised mast.
• Full Coverage Areas – areas (a 100m x100m landmass pixel in the analysis) where full market capacity has been reached i.e. 4G signal from all four operators is available.
• Partial Not Spots – areas where there is 4G signal available from at least one operator, but not from all operators in the market.
• Total Not Spots – areas where there is no 4G signal available from any operator.
• Pixel – A 100m x 100m pixels referenced against the Ordnance Survey Great Britain (OSGB) grid system exclusive to UK landmass.
• Forecasted Uplift – Uplift to at least the minimum threshold of 2Mbps underpinning the SRN compliance obligations.

3.11 Statistical processing and data compilation

BDUK employs a range of geospatial and analytical techniques in the calculation of its SRN metrics. At a high level, this entails overlaying MOVA data with datasets on the UK’s geographical, infrastructural, and demographic features.

MOVA’s datasets contain mast locations, mast coverage areas, and MOVA’s estimates of geographic, premises, and road coverage. These datasets are either mast-level or pixel-level (see above). BDUK datasets leverage data on the UK’s premises, road and rail networks, infrastructure, and indicators of economic output, deprivation, and other demographic characteristics.

These groups of datasets are then compared to each other using Python, R, and SQL scripts. The scripts perform various geospatial functions, including joins and intersections, as well as basic aggregation and pivoting. The results of these calculations can be presented either as maps or in tabular format.

The analysis of pixel datasets allows for changes in the provider characteristics of pixels to be observed. For example, we can establish whether a pixel was a total not spot, partial not spot or full coverage area prior to the intervention and its expected characteristic post the intervention. This allows us to quantify the scale of change for premises and roads.

4. Quality characteristics

4.1 Quality management

BDUK’s quality assurance strategy sets out minimum standards for quality assurance for analytical products and documentation, as well as roles and responsibilities across the organisation. The quality assurance strategy meets the requirements of the Government Functional Standard for Analysis.

The official statistics releases are compiled by members of the government analytical professions in BDUK, under the guidance of the lead official for statistics at BDUK and the Head of Profession for Statistics at the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT).

Decisions on data sources, analytical methods and assurance processes are agreed within the analytical team. This ensures decisions about the statistics are made by team members with appropriate professional capability, who can provide independent decision making and leadership.

Data is governed at BDUK by the Digital, Data and Technology team in line with GDPR and CDDO guidance on standards and best practice. Appropriate statistical disclosure rules are applied by analysts where confidential data is used.

4.2 Relevance

We classify our users into the main categories of industry bodies, interested local groups, and the general public. The statistics provided as part of the programme communications are developed to meet the key requirements of all of these users.

Shortcomings of our data content include the use of forecasts (the forecasts represent the mobile network best estimate of 4G uplift, rather than Connected Nations published coverage, which would be subject to significant timeliness issues) and uncertainties regarding the lived experience of coverage (network related factors such as cell tower load, device related factors and environmental factors may impact the lived experience of 4G coverage).

We welcome user feedback on the usefulness and value of our statistics.

4.3 Confidentiality

Statistical disclosure control is applied to confidential data in line with the Code of Practice for Statistics and relevant legislation.

The uplift forecasts used to generate these statistics are aggregated, therefore anonymising the individual uplift forecasts of mobile network operators.

4.4 Accuracy and reliability

Use of radio forecasts
The statistics generated are based on the forecasted coverage expected for each site. For both EAS and TNS this involves the combination of the radio forecasts submitted by the mobile network operators to MOVA. As such, this represents the best attempt to model the impact of the uplift generated by each mast. However, the forecast has not yet been verified by Connected Nations reporting or drive testing.

4.5 Accessibility and clarity

The analysis which this methodology release supports will be repeated on an ad hoc basis to support Government communications and other core work items as necessary.

4.6 Cost and burden

We estimate that producing the first annual statistics release took about 15 days full time equivalent. We are seeking to improve efficiency through automating data pipelines, improving the clarity of requirements for supplier data submissions.

4.7 Data revision

Revisions will be conducted under the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) revisions policy with the advice of the Head of Profession for Statistics at DSIT.

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