Digital Highlands and Islands

Stuart Robertson

Head of Broadband and Digital

Highlands and Islands Enterprise

Digital Highlands and Islands Action Plan - Overview

Highlands and Islands Region- Priorities for Digital

• Improving Connectivity • Business Growth – ICT Business and

Community Support• Developing ICT Skills and Awareness

(Digital Participation / Inclusion)• Collaboration and funding• Communications plan and awareness

raising

Highlands and Islands Region- Current focus activity

• New ‘Broadband and Digital Team’• Broadband Delivery UK (BDUK) project• ICT Business and Community Support – scoping

programme of support with Business Gateway• Citizens Online project• Sectoral links – Digital Healthcare, Homeworking,

Smart Tourism• ICT Skills Action Plan development – with SFC, SDS,

ScotlandIS, eSkills UK and SEnt• Glasgow School of Art, Centre for Design Innovation

Digital Participation

• Citizens Online project “Everybody Online” – recruitment of digital champions in remote communities

• Supporting individuals to develop IT skills through local events and sessions in communities

• Funded by BT, Nominet Trust and the Highland Council

• Project has successfully worked with 380 people in the Caithness and Sutherland area since 2008

• HIE currently working with the UK digital ambassador as the rural partner for the Race Online 2012 team

Partnership and Collaboration

• UK and Scottish Government• Business Gateway (national and local)• Public sector partners (incl. UHI, NHS, Las)• Private sector, including representative

business organisations • Technology Strategy Board and the

Knowledge Transfer Networks• Professional organisations • Represent the region on the Scottish

Technology Advisory Group and IAG for ICT

Connectivity Review

• Connectivity in the Highlands and Islands is good – Broadband coverage is good; high take-up– 2G coverage is comparable to other rural regions

• ...but it’s not great– Low broadband speeds– Small exchanges on Exchange Activate– Limited ADSL2+– Gaps in 2G coverage– 3G coverage limited to a number of towns

Superfast Broadband

2010 2012 2015UK 45% 50% 66%

Tel

epho

ne

exch

ang

e ADSL

up to 24Mbit/s

Fibre to the cabinet

up to 100Mbit/s

Current & Planned Rollout

UK Government Objectives

• To ensure this country has the best Superfast Broadband in Europe by the end of this parliament

• To ensure delivery of Standard Broadband to virtually all communities in the UK within the lifetime of this parliament

BDUK Process

• £530m available to 2015, £300m expected to be available in 2016-2017

• October 2010 announced funding for 4 initial superfast broadband projects– Highlands and Islands, Cumbria, North Yorkshire

and Herefordshire

• £68.8m allocated to Scottish Government• Devolved Administrations to agree national

plans with BDUK

Highlands and Islands ProjectKey Towns

Employment Deficit Area

Fragile Area and Small Towns

20km within Initial Towns

Additional Settlements

Highlands and Islands Project

• Provide superfast broadband into towns• Will deliver improved backhaul across the

region• Further work will investigate roll-out of 3G and

4G coverage• Will investigate re-use of infrastructure• PQQ shortlist announced – BT, C&W,

Commendium and Fujitsu• Expect upgrades to begin in 2012/13