The Phone Co-op

The Phone Co-op was an independent UK consumer cooperative that supplied telecommunications and related digital services to individuals, businesses, charities, local authorities, and other cooperatives. Its portfolio included fixed-line telephone services, broadband, mobile communications, web hosting, and related business telecoms. Rather than operating as a conventional investor-owned telecom provider, it was structured around cooperative ownership and the Rochdale Principles. Customers could become members, participate in the cooperative's governance, and receive a dividend linked to their spending when profits permitted. For the financial year ending 31 August 2016, the member dividend was reported as 1.5% of qualifying spend. The organization began in 1998 as SETCO, short for Social Economy Telecommunications Co-operative. At launch, membership was restricted to other cooperatives and charities. A rule change in August 1999 opened membership to the general public, and the organization adopted the name The Phone Co-op while converting into a cooperative society. This change allowed it to develop beyond a specialist supplier for the social economy and serve a broader customer base while retaining its cooperative identity. The Phone Co-op expanded through both organic growth and acquisitions. It acquired the telecommunications business of Saga Group in 2010, bringing approximately 8,000 residential customers into the organization. In 2013, it worked with the charity Community Network to take over a teleconferencing platform, enabling the charity to concentrate on its client work. In 2014, it acquired the broadband business of Namesco and invested £500,000 in the public-transport social enterprise HCT Group. It also became the UK sole stockist of the first Fairphone ethical smartphone and later partnered with Fairphone on the UK release of Fairphone 2. The cooperative delivered fixed-line services through Openreach infrastructure using local-loop unbundling and provided mobile services as a virtual network operator on the EE network. It also marketed services through affinity arrangements with organizations such as New Internationalist, Positive News, the Soil Association, and the World Development Movement. Under these arrangements, partner organizations received a share of revenue generated when their supporters joined or purchased services. Over the three years ending 31 August 2016, more than £180,000 was paid to affinity partners. Social and environmental objectives were central to the brand. The Phone Co-op was a Living Wage employer, received Fair Tax Mark accreditation, and published extensive non-financial information in its annual reporting. Its cooperative and Social Economy Development Fund invested retained earnings in the share capital of developing UK cooperatives and social enterprises, including Torrs Hydro, Go-op, Westmill Wind Farm Co-operative, and Birmingham Student Housing Co-operative. The business reported more than 30,000 customers in 2015, including organizations such as Amnesty International, The Big Issue, Christian Aid, Triodos Bank, UNISON, and several cooperative societies and local authorities. The business used The Co-operative brand under a licensing agreement from 2012, offering services under names including The Co-operative Phone & Broadband, The Co-operative Business Telecoms, and The Co-operative Mobile. In 2017, it brought its service brands back under The Phone Co-op name and adopted an identity incorporating the Global Cooperative Marque. That year, founder Vivian Woodell stepped down from the operating business to lead the Phone Co-op Foundation for Co-operative Innovation. The organization ultimately transferred its engagements to Midcounties Co-operative Society. Members approved the transfer at a special general meeting in April 2018, followed by a confirmatory vote in May. The transfer was completed on 1 June 2018, after which the Phone Co-op legal entity ceased to exist a…

The Phone Co-op originated in 1998 as SETCO, a telecommunications cooperative created to serve the social economy. Its initial membership was limited to cooperatives and charities. In August 1999, the rules were changed to admit the general public, and SETCO adopted The Phone Co-op name while becoming a cooperative society under the UK legislation governing industrial and provident societies. The change established the member-owned structure and public-facing identity that defined the organization for the rest of its independent existence. During the 2000s, the cooperative developed as an alternative telecom provider with an emphasis on ethical business conduct, cooperative governance, and social value. It supplied fixed-line and internet services and later added mobile communications, business telecoms, web hosting, and other digital services. Its infrastructure model used Openreach's fixed network through local-loop unbundling, while mobile services were delivered as a virtual operator on the EE network. Expansion accelerated through a combination of partnerships and acquisitions. In 2010, The Phone Co-op acquired Saga Group's telecoms operation and inherited roughly 8,000 residential customers. In 2012, it entered a brand licensing arrangement with Co-operative Brands Limited, enabling several services to use The Co-operative name. These included The Co-operative Phone & Broadband, The Co-operative Business Telecoms, and The Co-operative Mobile. In 2013, the cooperative took over Community Network's teleconferencing platform in a partnership designed to let the charity focus on its core client services. The following year it acquired Namesco's broadband business, invested £500,000 in social enterprise HCT Group, and became the UK sole stockist of the Fairphone 1 ethical smartphone. It also introduced a Pay As You Go SIM in cooperation with The Co-operative Group, with distribution through approximately 3,800 Co-operative Food branches. The ethical technology strategy continued in 2015 when The Phone Co-op partnered with Fairphone to release Fairphone 2 in the UK. Around this period, the organization served more than 30,000 customers across consumer, business, charitable, public-sector, and cooperative segments. Its customer base included nationally known charities, banks, trade unions, local authorities, and cooperative societies. The cooperative also operated an affinity marketing program, sharing revenue with aligned organizations that referred supporters to its telecom services. In parallel, its Cooperative and Social Economy Development Fund used retained earnings to invest in emerging cooperatives and social enterprises. The Phone Co-op's identity was supported by a range of social and environmental commitments. It followed the Rochdale Principles, offered member dividends linked to customer spending, and reported non-financial performance alongside conventional business information. It became a Living Wage employer in 2013 and was among the first organizations accredited by the Fair Tax Mark in 2014. In 2017, it gained Investors in People accreditation. That same year, the operating brands were consolidated under The Phone Co-op name rather than the licensed Co-operative sub-brands, and the visual identity incorporated the Global Cooperative Marque. Founder Vivian Woodell left the operating leadership in 2017 to head the Phone Co-op Foundation for Co-operative Innovation. The final phase of the organization's independent history involved a strategic debate over scale and investment. At the February 2018 annual general meeting, the board proposed increasing business sales through investment in systems and higher employee pay, using cooperative reserves and part of members' share capital. Members expressed concerns about the risks and requested more transparency. At a special general meeting on 28 April 2018, members approved the transfer of engagements to Midcounties Co-operative Society by 202 votes to 17. They separately supported the proposed business strategy by 136 votes to 50. A confirmatory meeting in Droitwich on 12 May passed the transfer by 75 votes to 1. The transfer was completed on 1 June 2018, ending The Phone Co-op as a separate legal entity and replacing the brand with Your Co-op within the Midcounties group. The post-transfer Pay As You Go service was eventually closed after a reduction in users, announced in 2021.

1. 2021Pay As You Go service closure is announced

   The Pay As You Go mobile service is scheduled for closure following a decline in users.

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2. 2018Transfer to Midcounties is completed

   The Phone Co-op transfers its engagements to Midcounties Co-operative Society on 1 June, ceasing to exist as a separate legal entity.

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3. 2017Service brands return to The Phone Co-op identity

   The organization consolidates its service branding under The Phone Co-op name and adopts the Global Cooperative Marque.

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4. 2015Fairphone 2 partnership

   The Phone Co-op partners with Fairphone for the UK release of the Fairphone 2 modular ethical smartphone.

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5. 2014Namesco broadband business is acquired

   The cooperative expands its broadband operations through the acquisition of Namesco's broadband business.

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6. 2014Pay As You Go mobile service launches

   A Pay As You Go SIM service is introduced with The Co-operative Group and distributed through Co-operative Food branches.

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7. 2013Community Network teleconferencing platform is transferred

   The Phone Co-op takes over a teleconferencing platform from Community Network in a partnership supporting the charity's core work.

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8. 2012Co-operative service branding is licensed

   The organization begins using selected Co-operative service brands under a licensing agreement.

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9. 2010Saga telecoms business is acquired

   The Phone Co-op acquires Saga Group's telecommunications business and approximately 8,000 residential customers.

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10. 1999Public membership is introduced

    Membership is opened to the general public, and SETCO adopts The Phone Co-op name.

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11. 1998SETCO is founded

    Social Economy Telecommunications Co-operative is established to provide telecommunications services for cooperatives and charities.

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A member-owned, ethical telecommunications cooperative serving consumers, organizations, charities, and the wider social economy.

• Fixed-line telephone servicesTelecommunications

  The Phone Co-op supplied residential and business fixed-line telephone services in the UK. Its fixed-line network arrangements used Openreach infrastructure through local-loop unbundling, allowing the cooperative to provide voice and related connectivity services without owning the entire physical access network.

• BroadbandInternet access

  Broadband was a core part of The Phone Co-op's consumer and organizational offering. The business expanded this activity through the acquisition of Namesco's broadband operation in 2014, complementing its fixed-line services and wider telecommunications portfolio.

• Mobile servicesMobile telecommunications

  The cooperative provided mobile services as a virtual network operator using the EE network. It offered both postpaid mobile services and, from 2014, a Pay As You Go SIM service marketed with The Co-operative Group and distributed through its retail branches.

• Web hosting and business telecomsBusiness communications

  Beyond consumer connectivity, The Phone Co-op provided web hosting, business telecommunications, and teleconferencing-related services. These offerings helped it serve charities, local authorities, cooperatives, and commercial organizations alongside household customers.

• Fairphone distributionEthical mobile devices2014

  The Phone Co-op became the UK's sole stockist of the Fairphone 1 in 2014 and later partnered with Fairphone on the UK release of Fairphone 2. The relationship reinforced the cooperative's positioning around ethical supply chains, repairability, and socially responsible technology.

• 2014Fairphone ethical technology partnership

  United Kingdom

  The Phone Co-op promoted Fairphone's modular and ethically positioned smartphones, becoming the UK sole stockist of Fairphone 1 and later supporting the UK launch of Fairphone 2.

  Outcome. The partnership strengthened the brand's association with responsible technology and ethical consumption.

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• Affinity marketing program

  United Kingdom

  The Phone Co-op worked with aligned organizations including New Internationalist, Positive News, the Soil Association, and the World Development Movement. These partners introduced supporters to the cooperative's services and received a share of resulting revenue.

  Outcome. More than £180,000 was paid to affinity partners over the three years ending 31 August 2016.

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• 2021Close Pay As You Go mobile serviceStrategy

  Usage of the Pay As You Go service had declined after the transfer of the business.

  What changed. The service operator announced that the Pay As You Go offering would be closed.

  Aftermath. The Pay As You Go product was discontinued.

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• 2018Transfer engagements to Midcounties Co-operative SocietyM&A

  The board argued that Midcounties offered greater resources and opportunities to cross-sell services, while members debated the risks of investing reserves and member capital in business growth.

  What changed. Members approved the transfer at a special general meeting on 28 April 2018, followed by a confirmatory vote on 12 May. The transfer was completed on 1 June 2018.

  Aftermath. The Phone Co-op legal entity ceased to exist and the operation was rebranded as Your Co-op.

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• 2012Adopt licensed Co-operative service brandsStrategy

  The organization sought to align selected telecommunications services with the wider Co-operative brand.

  What changed. It entered a brand licensing agreement covering The Co-operative Phone & Broadband, The Co-operative Business Telecoms, and The Co-operative Mobile.

  Aftermath. The service brands were later brought back under The Phone Co-op identity in 2017.

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• 2021The Phone Co-op Pay As You Go service to close

  The former service operation announced the closure of its Pay As You Go mobile service after usage declined.

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• 2018Members approve transfer to Midcounties Co-operative Society

  Members voted to transfer the cooperative's engagements to Midcounties Co-operative Society, with the transfer completed on 1 June 2018.

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• 2014The Phone Co-op acquires Namesco broadband business

  The cooperative expanded its broadband operation through the acquisition of Namesco's broadband business.

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• 2010The Phone Co-op acquires Saga Group telecoms business

  The cooperative acquired Saga Group's telecommunications business, including approximately 8,000 residential customers.

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1. The Phone Co-op