Vivian Woodell knew little about the telecommunications industry 10 years ago. But he did know his telephone bills were unnecessarily high and that he wanted to do something about it. Today he is chief executive of a fast-growing telecoms business, with a turnover of £7m and about 40 staff, mostly based at the head offices in Chipping Norton, Oxfordshire.

This is not a typical story of a small start-up, however. It is one of a tiny number of new ventures in recent years to have dusted off the Victorian legislation for co-operatives, rather than incorporating under the Companies Act. As a result it is the phone customers who legally own the business, elect the board and share the dividends. For Mr Woodell, 46, the Phone Co-op shows there is life in the old consumer co-operative model yet.