Presentation Transcript

1. Ewes Valley BroadbandDumfries & Galloway

   Allison Little 24 April 2013
2. Allison Little Why am I here? Moved in with family two years ago (2 school age children, 1 at university) Before house purchased, called BT who said Broadband was available 6 months for BT Executive complaints to find out BB supply to my house was impossible (mechanical exchange)
3. The Ewes Valley South of Scotland, north of Langholm A7 trunk road runs up valley 100 residents – 65 to 70 properties 9 miles long; north/south Head of the Ewes Water catchment that flows into the Solway 1 Church, 1 Village Hall
4. The Ewes Valley Houses are predominantly in the bottom of the narrow and winding valley Hills rise steeply on both sides to about 500m Predominantly sheep farming with small woodland / shelterbelt areas Some holiday lets
5. Existing Broadband Valley is on Mechanical Phone Exchange Some residents & business’ have Avanti / Tooway Satellite Broadband. Very expensive and has long latency
6. Better Broadband. 2013 - Residents & Businesses would like a service which is: not restricting –(monthly quota: Skype, iPlayer) competitively priced reliable & flexible self financing future proof
7. Where are we now? Previously: Initial community meeting in Langholm – Director of BT Scotland, David Mundell MP, Vice President of NFU Scotland, South of Scotland Alliance, local councillors, residents all present. (little support voiced from BT) South of Scotland Alliance arranged for Funding (sp. Peter Irving) Publicised in local press Follow up Meeting – Processes and Options. Clive Downing presented community with route to BB supply. Noted various options (infrastructure / company setup vs existing company)
8. Where are we now? Continued… Committee formed and valley surveyed to map interest (Yes/No/Maybe; Residential/Business). GIS map → CBS No obvious solution from initial mapping (but still very useful) Technical Survey – CBS organised funding and engineers – made very easy for us.
9. The Technical Survey Visit 3 days scheduled Initial meeting with CBS, engineers and reps. from valley. Discuss timetable/areas for the visit Visit backhaul supply Test Clive’s fitness! On the ground survey – photograph valley, analyse for lines of sight Completed in 2 days Knowledgeable engineers assisted by residents/famers Known outcome to date – some casualties and Wireless System on 3 masts Awaiting report/results from visit
10. Next Steps Engineers Report – committee and CBS meet in Ewes Decide on course of action – implement the system paperwork funding planning permissions landowner permissions Ground works tendering process (run concurrently?) setup and installation of technical equipment Rollout Throughout the process keep community/landowners informed of progress via hand delivered note or community meetings – local press?
11. Points for discussion Future proof – Langholm specific? Local employment/trades – community project, can it be about more than just BB? Press – what to say and when – distortion may cause issues Landowners – what to say and when. Big vs small? How to work with unhelpful landowners? Costs – Schedule of costs through project. How much is allocated? Infrastructure – tendering process, future maintenance, ongoing CBS relationship with BB supplier?
12. Initial Survey Results Free GIS software – QuantumGIS