CSW (Warwickshire) BDUK Update

The CSW Website has been getting regular newsletter updates, and is one of the more informative & communicative projects, so always seems to manage to add information to the general understanding of the BDUK process.

Their latest newsletter show two interesting things...

1. That they've been allocated an extra £1.4m, which would allow an extra 6,500 homes to be connected to fibre-based cabinets, which is around an extra 1.5% coverage.

They say that this means 51k premises get included in the rollout, and 41k will get SFBB speeds, but I can't get those figures to tie in with the numbers announced in June.

This isn't the first BDUK project that has gained extra funds.

2. That they are ignoring RCBF funding - mostly down to timescales, and risk to the existing project, plus the effect on the new tranche of funding (for 2017).

In addition...

Their older newsletters refer to a network re-arrangement process known as CuRE, where they seem to be including plans to re-align the copper network between cabinet and premises. This doesn't seem to be the work on EO lines, and is more to do with connections at the DP, so is a new part of the process to me.

Ta - interesting to read their comments.

Suspect the public would value the map at least overlaid on an OS map, as for now it looks like a funky battleship paint job

Their Q&A section has been updated, along with an explanation about why the map doesn't show roads...

The good part is that they acknowledge that the BDUK requirement is to map at postcode level, while deployment follows different boundaries. They acknowledge that this means that the postcode map isn't an entirely accurate representation of what will happen - and so are undoubtedly trying to protect themselves (and/or BT) from mass enquiries and complaints about subsequent changes. And that leaves the bad part - that everyone must wait for accurate details.

It was also interesting to read some of their answers on rural vs urban.

The joy of complaining is that if the effort to ensure totally accuracy (or for other areas think risk free events) is too costly, then the other option of minimal or no information is the answer.

Nothants mapping comes with lots of disclaimers and statements like "Access to superfast broadband is expected to start becoming available in parts of this area in 2015. Deployment Plans may change (see FAQs)"

Until the number checker says you can order it I don't see much point.

I can see why people would like to know, but also have seen others complain when things change, so much easier to deal with 'we simply cannot say' questions.

Remember the ASA checker ruling...imagine if that started happening to councils.

If the external costs were fixed, or the budget was not so tight I am sure we could have much better mapping, or they could just all employ me to do some maps.

it would need your level of understanding / patience to correlate postcodes and exchange areas, let alone cabinets. As CSW say the postcode areas just don't align with telephone infrastructure very well or at all.

I think this hits the nail on the head... Even after the cabinet surveys have been done, it would still be an expensive job to predict and map coverage precisely.

Every £ spent on mapping, and on subsequently dealing with the support questions, is a £ not spent on actual deployment.

I'm still intrigued by the mention of the CuRE process. I wonder what this entails, how much they can gain from it, and how widespread it is.

In reply to a post by WWWombat:

I'm still intrigued by the mention of the CuRE process. I wonder what this entails, how much they can gain from it, and how widespread it is.

I can see various opportunities for rearranging the local loop with VDSL in mind rather than just telephony, like those on the edge of an exchange area fed from the "wrong" exchange or cases where the loop has a couple of hundred metres added that could be circumvented by feeding off a pole closer to the PCP, that kind of thing. No idea if that's what it refers to.