Sunday, 19 July 2015

@WAR - Superfast Broadband Update July 2015

Bringing faster broadband to our rural areas

Project Update July 2015

Please forward this email to your contacts –
we need to spread the word!


If you would like a Word version of this newsletter please email: broadband@cswbroadband.org.uk
 
Sign up to receive this e-newsletter direct to your inbox and for information about progress on your cabinet or exchange-only line: http://www.cswbroadband.org.uk/contact-us/register-for-more-information
 

188 cabinets live to date

Over 37,000 properties able to connect to the fibre network

 

Topics in this edition:

Keeping children and young people safe online
Over 300 additional people to receive updates about their cabinets!
Final local briefing event in Atherstone
Questions and Answers
 

Keeping Children and Young People Safe Online

The Internet has transformed the way in which we all live our lives. Never before has there been a technology that has grown with such speed, had such a deep and wide penetration into all parts of society and all cultures, or been so (relatively) affordable.
 
Children and young people are among the biggest users of online technology - whether it is for education, research, online gaming, email, social media or a host of other uses. Young people cannot imagine a time when they could not simply take their phone out of their pocket to look for details of the next bus, find a film to watch, enjoy face-to-face contact with their friends or take and share photos and videos of seemingly every moment of their waking day.
 
However, this phenomenal growth in use and applications does carry risks. You would not allow your eight-year-old to wander the streets of a strange town alone; yet that is effectively what they may be doing when online, unless simple safeguards have been put in place.
 
Make no mistake about it, the internet is a fantastic resource, but it does have to be used sensibly and parents should not simply assume that everything is safe or that their children are behaving responsibly. So, what can you do?
 
Fortunately there are a number of resources available to help parents navigate their way through the mass of information that is available. Here are some of the best:
 
Warwickshire Facebook Page – Staying Safe Online An easy way to keep up with online safety messages, risks and awareness is to visit this Facebook page.  The page has regular updates and many Warwickshire schools have provided e-Safety content in the form of images, videos, songs and classwork. If you do not have an account, that’s fine, just go to this web address -https://www.facebook.com/stayingsafeonline - and you can view the page.  If you do have an account, search for Staying Safe Online and ‘Like’ the page and you will then receive updates about online safety. 
 
If you would like to check that your Facebook settings are just how you want them, this guide is really useful: http://emdp.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/Facebook-checklist-Nov2013.pdf
 
Internet Matters have a great e-safety advice section that breaks down the different uses by age, starting with 0-5 and going through to 14+. This enables you to evaluate the actual risks and it clearly explains the measures that you can take to help protect your children. The site also gives very helpful information about issues that children may face:  http://www.internetmatters.org
 
NSPCC has a great section of its website dedicated to online safety. It gives helpful advice and tools, particularly around social networking behaviours, and also has a great section about different types of technologies such as laptops, tablets and mobiles: http://www.nspcc.org.uk/preventing-abuse/keeping-children-safe/online-safety
 
BBC website has some great resources in its Share Take Care pages, as well as links to videos, external sites and other resources on a host of internet and broadband-related issues:http://www.bbc.co.uk/webwise/0/22728225  If you go up one level from this link to the Webwise pages there are also numerous articles on topics ranging from “what is a search engine?” through Digital Skills to topics such as Crowdfunding. This site alone could make the topic of a future newsletter!
 
Respect Yourself is an award-winning campaign run by Warwickshire County Council that gives advice to teenagers about safe online and offline relationships. It is not specifically focussed on online issues, but does give some very helpful guidance. It also covers issues such as relationships, peer pressure, self-image and confidence, and has a section specifically for parents. The advice is practical and down to earth, and uses language that teenagers themselves will recognise and relate to: http://www.respectyourself.info
 

Over 300 additional people to receive updates about their cabinets!

We were delighted with the response to an article in our last newsletter. Over 300 additional people submitted information that has enabled us to link them on our system to their local infrastructure so that they can be notified directly by email when upgrades are due to take place on their line. We’ll also be emailing them directly when they are able to connect to the new fibre network.
 
If you would like to take advantage of this offer, and have not already done so, please follow the link below and complete both parts of the form so that we can make sure that we have the correct information for you and can match your response to your existing entry on the database. Your details will not be sent on to any third parties. You can register here: http://www.cswbroadband.org.uk/contact-us/register-for-more-information
 

Final local briefing event in Atherstone

We have now run events in Rugby, Warwick and Stratford and the final event of this series will be held on Wednesday 8th July in Atherstone from 6:15. The programme is:
 
18:15 – Arrival and registration
18:30 – Presentation outlining progress so far, what is known of the future and the Connection Voucher scheme
19:00 – Q&A session
20:30 – Finish (depending on the number of questions!)
 
The venue is North Warwickshire Borough Council (CV9 1DE). All are welcome, so if you couldn’t get to one of the earlier events please feel free to come to this one.
 
Go to our Eventbrite page to book: http://www.eventbrite.com/o/csw-broadband-3997770867
 

Copy for your own website or newsletter

We regularly produce updates of around 350 words that can be used on your own website or in newsletters. There are a selection of articles available for download and you can select the most appropriate depending on where your particular area is in the rollout pipeline. Copy can be found at: http://www.cswbroadband.org.uk/downloads-resources/copy-to-use-on-your-own-website-newsletters-or-flyers
 

Questions and Answers

These are some of the Q&As raised at the local briefing events. Look out for the special Q&A newsletter in August.
Over what timescale will amber areas get superfast broadband?
The amber areas on our map are currently in the planning phase for Contract 2, Part 1. As with the announcement of Contract 1, this is all subject to survey and there is a lot of work still to do before we can give details of when the rollout will actually occur in each area. At present we have an indicative schedule of rollout commencing during the summer of 2016 and continuing until summer 2019. However, as with the current programme, we are working to accelerate this and over the next few months will be working closely with BT to ensure that we gain maximum efficiencies from the programming. This approach has borne fruit with Contract 1 where we are well ahead of schedule on the overall rollout.
 
The potential coverage for Contract 2, Part 1 has been mapped. This is a single block colour only at present and, as with Contract 1, the colours will be introduced as the detail is known. There is a lot of surveying and other work to do before we get to the stage of being able to break things down into Phases though.
 
There is one caveat, as the mapping is done by postcode and telecoms infrastructure clearly does not follow postcodes. In fact, as the surveys progress we are finding that we have some postcodes that are served by a number of cabinets, and some cabinets that serve properties in more than one postcode. When you factor in the fact that some properties may be served by exchanges or cabinets that are several miles away you can see the difficulties. Until we get the announcement of which cabinets are to be upgraded at the start of each Phase we are unable to say with any degree of certainty which properties will be able to connect to the new service. We are pushing for earlier information but because of the need to complete survey work it is hard to be any more precise.
 
Can the mailing list be split into two for those who are interested in project progress and for those who are awaiting news of upgrades?
It would be impossible to split the mailing list as we have found that people’s needs change over time. If we were to split the mailing list and send out two different newsletters we would be forever trying to second-guess which list people should be on! Why not let us know what topics you would like to see covered in future newsletters and we’ll do our best to cover these. It would help us to know what you actually want. Ideas by email please to: broadband@cswbroadband.org.uk
 
As an area comes closer to its scheduled upgrade people will start to receive literature through their Local Broadband Champion and that tends to increase the interest. Where we have detailed information we can also link properties to the local infrastructure on our system and can send an email informing you when upgrades are due to take place and again when the new fibre service goes live. You can register for updates here:http://www.cswbroadband.org.uk/contact-us/register-for-more-information 
 
Can CSW Broadband influence how much suppliers charge for their services – particularly for those in white areas? 
We have no influence over the prices charged by commercial providers – in white areas, or where we have upgraded the network. Our role is to extend the wholesale fibre network as far as possible, and we are doing this through the contracts that we hold with BT. As access to the network is available to all suppliers on an equal basis it is a purely commercial decision on the part of an ISP as to which packages they offer and at which price range. The best thing is to shop around for a deal that is right for you. Please remember that price comparison sites work by receiving a commission from the ISPs and may not list all of the available options. Therefore you may want to try several such sites or for independent advice got to: http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/phones/cheap-broadband
 

More frequently asked broadband questions can be found on our website at: http://www.cswbroadband.org.uk/faq

 
Send this email on to all your contacts! We need to reach as many people as possible as quickly as possible. Please send this email to your contacts and encourage them to send it further. It’s probably best to remove the contact details above our logo at the top of the email otherwise it could get to be a very long string before the email itself appears!
 

CSW Broadband now on social media – come and join the conversation

We are now on the major social media channels and are already creating a buzz. Join in for up-to-date information and an opportunity to influence how the project develops:
 
Facebook Page -  https://www.facebook.com/CSWSuperfastBroadband

Twitter - https://twitter.com#!/cswbroadband

LinkedIn -  http://www.linkedin.com/groups/CSW-Superfast-Broadband-4403473
 

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Don’t forget our new email addresses!

Don’t forget that we now have new email addresses and that using these will help us to better respond to your enquiries:
 
Newsletter             BroadbandNews@cswbroadband.org.uk
 
All enquiries           Broadband@cswbroadband.org.uk
 
Please ensure that these are enabled in your firewall as we would hate you to miss out on the important announcements that we have coming up.

CSW Broadband is a partnership between Warwickshire County Council, Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council, Coventry City Council, BT and Department for Culture Media & Sport. Logos have been removed to reduce file size for emailing. 

CSW Broadband
Warwickshire County Council
Email: broadband@cswbroadband.org.uk

CSW Broadband project - bringing faster broadband to your area
http://www.cswbroadband.org.uk 
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