Project Update - Broadband
The current WAT IF? Broadband Working Group was set up in June 2018 to make progress towards better broadband for everyone in the WAT IF? area.
After researching different potential solutions, the group decided to partner with Borders Online on a wireless broadband network for the WAT IF? area. The new wireless network will greatly improve digital connectivity across the area, but particularly for outlying communities, who have seen no benefit from the fibre roll out to Auchengray and Tarbrax. The wireless network is currently under construction and it is expected that the first customers will be able to sign up for the new service from July 2019. Please keep an eye on the WAT IF? Facebook page and Warbler newsletter for the latest updates.
PHOTO: The Broadband Working Group with R100 Director, Duncan Nisbet
Background
Since its beginnings in 2013, WAT IF? has been working towards better broadband for local residents. For the last 5 years, WAT IF? has concentrated on working with BT (now Openreach) to maximise coverage in the WAT IF? area as part of the national Broadband roll out. This led to the signing of a Community Fibre Partnership with BT in November 2017, to bring fibre broadband to Auchengray, an area that would otherwise have been excluded from BT’s roll out plans. WAT IF? also performed a technical survey of the WAT IF? area, gauging existing provision and potential community solutions. Progress was hampered by an unclear picture of BT’s technical plans for the WAT IF? area. At that time, it was considered irresponsible to commit community funds to a complex and expensive project (such as a community-run broadband network), when it was possible that this work might be funded and undertaken by BT anyway.
The Broadband Working Group
The Community Action Plan consultation in early 2018 highlighted poor Broadband as a major concern in the WAT IF? area. There was also a consensus that good broadband needed to be available across the whole area, not just in isolated patches. To address this concern, a Broadband Working Group was set up. The current Broadband Working group is comprised of volunteers from the local area, including two renewal energy experts, a technical specialist, a representative from South Lanarkshire Council dealing with the R100 process, local business owners and local residents.
R100 Program
In December 2017, the Scottish Government announced an investment of £6m towards the Reaching 100% Programme (“R100”). The purpose of the R100 program is to extend the availability of NGA broadband infrastructure nationally, delivering superfast broadband access to 100% of premises in Scotland by 2021.
To achieve this, the Scottish Government intends to procure further coverage of NGA broadband infrastructure (capable of delivering download speeds of at least 30 Mbps) in areas where such broadband is currently unavailable. The vast majority of the WAT IF? area will be covered by the Central contract with a small area to the South being covered by the South contract. The “procurement process” has now been completed (finished November 2018) and a small number of providers (4 in total) submitted tenders for the work. The R100 team are now in negotiations with the different providers to press for further coverage from the funds available. Further updates and a timeline for work is expected to be available towards the end of 2019.
Concerns about R100
The ambition of the R100 process is limited by the budget available. Under the procurement process, providers are only required to include as many properties as possible using the funds available. It is likely that some remote properties will be deemed too expensive or unviable to reach. This means that when contracts for the work are eventually issued, some properties may be left out. An "Assigned Intervention Manager" has been appointed by the R100 team to assist with these "left out" properties but as yet, there is no clear indication of the number of premises affected.
Until the delivery program for R100 becomes clear, it remains difficult for communities to scope out alterative solutions such as independent fibre or wireless networks. It also makes it difficult to secure the large-scale external funding to develop these networks. Funders are understandably reluctant to pay for something that the government may be providing anyway.
January 2019 - Fibre broadband reaches Tarbrax and Auchengray
Auchengray: Back in November 2017, WAT IF? signed a Broadband Partnership Agreement with Openreach and part-funded the installation of a green cabinet in the village. Technical works relating to the agreement were finally completed in January and the fibre went live.
Tarbrax: As part of the nation-wide fibre roll out, Openreach connected Tarbrax in January 2019.
Residents living within a 2 km distance of the fibre-enabled cabinets in Tarbrax and Auchengray can now access an improved service and faster speeds. To check if your property is connected to fibre enter your postcode at scotlandsuperfast.com/.
Timeline of Activities: WAT IF? Broadband Working Group:
June 2018
The group met with Amanda Burgauer, Chair of Scottish Rural Action. Amanda previously managed her own software company and is on the Digital Expert Panel appointed by Fergus Ewan to oversee procurement of R100. She first became involved with community run broadband networks through her experience of living with very poor broadband speeds in Elvanfoot, where she was part of a group endeavouring to develop a community run broadband network.
She shared her knowledge and experience of the pros and cons of running a community broadband network. Amanda is an advocate of FTTP solutions (fibre to the premises) rather than FTTC solutions (fibre to the cabinet). FTTC solutions are problematic in rural areas as broadband speeds drop away considerably the further your phone line extends from the cabinet, with little or no discernible improvement in your broadband speed if you live more than 1500m from a cabinet. In contrast FTTP solutions such as the community broadband network recently installed in Balquidder can deliver speeds of 1000MB/s on both upload and download. https://balquhidder.net/
July 2018
The group met with Professor Gordon Hughes of StoboNet. StoboNet is a community-run broadband network operating in the Dawyck Valley area. The StoboNet network employs wireless technology via a network of microwave-linked relay masts which are in turn linked by fibre optic cable to the main Edinburgh internet hub at the Gyle. It covers a 2000km² in the Scottish Borders and focuses on rural areas. The scheme currently provides customers with 50MB/s with some business customers opting for the higher 100MB/s. https://nothing-ordinary.co.uk/portfolio/stobonet-community-broadband-branding/ Gordon is an advocate of wireless broadband technology because it offers a quicker economical route to greatly improved broadband and suits the topography of rural areas where the digging of trenches for cable can prove problematic. StoboNet plans to merge with Heriot Broadband to form a new community wireless broadband company, Borders Online, in the near future.
October & November 2018
Further discussion about independent networks took place and potential partners were identified. The group continued to monitor the regular updates from the Scottish Government on the R100 program and what it will mean for our area.
February 2019
The technical viability of a wireless network in the WAT IF? area was explored. Professor Gordon Hughes and a volunteer from the Broadband Working Group scouted out a number of geographical locations to ascertain if it was possible to triangulate a signal that provided full (or as near as possible) coverage of the WAT IF? area. Technical plans were created. These plans showed that masts in 3 locations would achieve the desired coverage, with the WAT IF? wireless network then connecting back into Stobonet's existing wireless network. These investigations resulted in a proposal to work jointly with Stobonet (soon to become Borders Online) to deliver a community wireless network in the WAT IF? area. WAT IF? and the Broadband Working Group are now in the process of consulting with the community via a survey and a number of engagement events to gauge local interest in the proposed service.
April 2019
Community events were held at Woolfords Village Hall and Auchengray Church Centre to inform local residents about the planned wireless service and to provide an opportunity to raise questions/ask for further information. Professor Gordon Hughes from Borders Online prepared a presentation about the proposed new wireless service and how it would work. Residents also had a chance to look at the kind of equipment that would be installed at their premises to receive the wireless signal. Community feedback from these events and the WAT IF? broadband survey was very enthusiastic. Many local residents were keen for the new service to go ahead particularly those in outlying areas experiencing single figure download speeds. A proposal was taken to WAT IF? trustees to enter a partnership agreement with Borders Online to deliver the new service. Trustees unanimously approved the motion and Borders Online began project planning the network build.
June 2019
WAT IF? and Borders Online negotiate a Joint Partnership Agreement. WAT IF? make an investment of £40,000 towards the construction of relays and repeaters to extend the Borders Online network to cover the WAT IF? area. Borders Online commit to using this equipment to operate a wireless broadband service for WAT IF? residents.
The goal of this joint venture is to ensure that, all households and businesses within the local area will have access to superfast broadband from either Fibre to the Cabinet (operated by Openreach) or the wireless broadband service (operated by Borders Online).
To take advantage of the "fair weather window", network construction moves fast. Borders Online install masts at Colzium Hill in West Lothian and on the top of Tarbrax Bing. The first "test customers" are connected at Woolfords, Cobbinshaw and Crosswoodhill. The integrity of the new network is thoroughly tested and adaptations are made.
July 2019
The wireless broadband service goes live! Customers are invited to sign up for the new service both online and in the July issue of the Warbler newsletter. A £120 WAT IF? installation voucher is offered to all new WAT IF? area residents signing up for the new service. Further network equipment is installed at Calla.
The current WAT IF? Broadband Working Group was set up in June 2018 to make progress towards better broadband for everyone in the WAT IF? area.
After researching different potential solutions, the group decided to partner with Borders Online on a wireless broadband network for the WAT IF? area. The new wireless network will greatly improve digital connectivity across the area, but particularly for outlying communities, who have seen no benefit from the fibre roll out to Auchengray and Tarbrax. The wireless network is currently under construction and it is expected that the first customers will be able to sign up for the new service from July 2019. Please keep an eye on the WAT IF? Facebook page and Warbler newsletter for the latest updates.
PHOTO: The Broadband Working Group with R100 Director, Duncan Nisbet
Background
Since its beginnings in 2013, WAT IF? has been working towards better broadband for local residents. For the last 5 years, WAT IF? has concentrated on working with BT (now Openreach) to maximise coverage in the WAT IF? area as part of the national Broadband roll out. This led to the signing of a Community Fibre Partnership with BT in November 2017, to bring fibre broadband to Auchengray, an area that would otherwise have been excluded from BT’s roll out plans. WAT IF? also performed a technical survey of the WAT IF? area, gauging existing provision and potential community solutions. Progress was hampered by an unclear picture of BT’s technical plans for the WAT IF? area. At that time, it was considered irresponsible to commit community funds to a complex and expensive project (such as a community-run broadband network), when it was possible that this work might be funded and undertaken by BT anyway.
The Broadband Working Group
The Community Action Plan consultation in early 2018 highlighted poor Broadband as a major concern in the WAT IF? area. There was also a consensus that good broadband needed to be available across the whole area, not just in isolated patches. To address this concern, a Broadband Working Group was set up. The current Broadband Working group is comprised of volunteers from the local area, including two renewal energy experts, a technical specialist, a representative from South Lanarkshire Council dealing with the R100 process, local business owners and local residents.
R100 Program
In December 2017, the Scottish Government announced an investment of £6m towards the Reaching 100% Programme (“R100”). The purpose of the R100 program is to extend the availability of NGA broadband infrastructure nationally, delivering superfast broadband access to 100% of premises in Scotland by 2021.
To achieve this, the Scottish Government intends to procure further coverage of NGA broadband infrastructure (capable of delivering download speeds of at least 30 Mbps) in areas where such broadband is currently unavailable. The vast majority of the WAT IF? area will be covered by the Central contract with a small area to the South being covered by the South contract. The “procurement process” has now been completed (finished November 2018) and a small number of providers (4 in total) submitted tenders for the work. The R100 team are now in negotiations with the different providers to press for further coverage from the funds available. Further updates and a timeline for work is expected to be available towards the end of 2019.
Concerns about R100
The ambition of the R100 process is limited by the budget available. Under the procurement process, providers are only required to include as many properties as possible using the funds available. It is likely that some remote properties will be deemed too expensive or unviable to reach. This means that when contracts for the work are eventually issued, some properties may be left out. An "Assigned Intervention Manager" has been appointed by the R100 team to assist with these "left out" properties but as yet, there is no clear indication of the number of premises affected.
Until the delivery program for R100 becomes clear, it remains difficult for communities to scope out alterative solutions such as independent fibre or wireless networks. It also makes it difficult to secure the large-scale external funding to develop these networks. Funders are understandably reluctant to pay for something that the government may be providing anyway.
January 2019 - Fibre broadband reaches Tarbrax and Auchengray
Auchengray: Back in November 2017, WAT IF? signed a Broadband Partnership Agreement with Openreach and part-funded the installation of a green cabinet in the village. Technical works relating to the agreement were finally completed in January and the fibre went live.
Tarbrax: As part of the nation-wide fibre roll out, Openreach connected Tarbrax in January 2019.
Residents living within a 2 km distance of the fibre-enabled cabinets in Tarbrax and Auchengray can now access an improved service and faster speeds. To check if your property is connected to fibre enter your postcode at scotlandsuperfast.com/.
Timeline of Activities: WAT IF? Broadband Working Group:
June 2018
The group met with Amanda Burgauer, Chair of Scottish Rural Action. Amanda previously managed her own software company and is on the Digital Expert Panel appointed by Fergus Ewan to oversee procurement of R100. She first became involved with community run broadband networks through her experience of living with very poor broadband speeds in Elvanfoot, where she was part of a group endeavouring to develop a community run broadband network.
She shared her knowledge and experience of the pros and cons of running a community broadband network. Amanda is an advocate of FTTP solutions (fibre to the premises) rather than FTTC solutions (fibre to the cabinet). FTTC solutions are problematic in rural areas as broadband speeds drop away considerably the further your phone line extends from the cabinet, with little or no discernible improvement in your broadband speed if you live more than 1500m from a cabinet. In contrast FTTP solutions such as the community broadband network recently installed in Balquidder can deliver speeds of 1000MB/s on both upload and download. https://balquhidder.net/
July 2018
The group met with Professor Gordon Hughes of StoboNet. StoboNet is a community-run broadband network operating in the Dawyck Valley area. The StoboNet network employs wireless technology via a network of microwave-linked relay masts which are in turn linked by fibre optic cable to the main Edinburgh internet hub at the Gyle. It covers a 2000km² in the Scottish Borders and focuses on rural areas. The scheme currently provides customers with 50MB/s with some business customers opting for the higher 100MB/s. https://nothing-ordinary.co.uk/portfolio/stobonet-community-broadband-branding/ Gordon is an advocate of wireless broadband technology because it offers a quicker economical route to greatly improved broadband and suits the topography of rural areas where the digging of trenches for cable can prove problematic. StoboNet plans to merge with Heriot Broadband to form a new community wireless broadband company, Borders Online, in the near future.
October & November 2018
Further discussion about independent networks took place and potential partners were identified. The group continued to monitor the regular updates from the Scottish Government on the R100 program and what it will mean for our area.
February 2019
The technical viability of a wireless network in the WAT IF? area was explored. Professor Gordon Hughes and a volunteer from the Broadband Working Group scouted out a number of geographical locations to ascertain if it was possible to triangulate a signal that provided full (or as near as possible) coverage of the WAT IF? area. Technical plans were created. These plans showed that masts in 3 locations would achieve the desired coverage, with the WAT IF? wireless network then connecting back into Stobonet's existing wireless network. These investigations resulted in a proposal to work jointly with Stobonet (soon to become Borders Online) to deliver a community wireless network in the WAT IF? area. WAT IF? and the Broadband Working Group are now in the process of consulting with the community via a survey and a number of engagement events to gauge local interest in the proposed service.
April 2019
Community events were held at Woolfords Village Hall and Auchengray Church Centre to inform local residents about the planned wireless service and to provide an opportunity to raise questions/ask for further information. Professor Gordon Hughes from Borders Online prepared a presentation about the proposed new wireless service and how it would work. Residents also had a chance to look at the kind of equipment that would be installed at their premises to receive the wireless signal. Community feedback from these events and the WAT IF? broadband survey was very enthusiastic. Many local residents were keen for the new service to go ahead particularly those in outlying areas experiencing single figure download speeds. A proposal was taken to WAT IF? trustees to enter a partnership agreement with Borders Online to deliver the new service. Trustees unanimously approved the motion and Borders Online began project planning the network build.
June 2019
WAT IF? and Borders Online negotiate a Joint Partnership Agreement. WAT IF? make an investment of £40,000 towards the construction of relays and repeaters to extend the Borders Online network to cover the WAT IF? area. Borders Online commit to using this equipment to operate a wireless broadband service for WAT IF? residents.
The goal of this joint venture is to ensure that, all households and businesses within the local area will have access to superfast broadband from either Fibre to the Cabinet (operated by Openreach) or the wireless broadband service (operated by Borders Online).
To take advantage of the "fair weather window", network construction moves fast. Borders Online install masts at Colzium Hill in West Lothian and on the top of Tarbrax Bing. The first "test customers" are connected at Woolfords, Cobbinshaw and Crosswoodhill. The integrity of the new network is thoroughly tested and adaptations are made.
July 2019
The wireless broadband service goes live! Customers are invited to sign up for the new service both online and in the July issue of the Warbler newsletter. A £120 WAT IF? installation voucher is offered to all new WAT IF? area residents signing up for the new service. Further network equipment is installed at Calla.