|
Home
 Broadband news
BT broadband brings
together two remote UK communities
BT broadband brings together two remote
UK communities (04/10/05)
Baltasound school in the Shetland Islands,
which is on the same latitude as Southern Greenland, links up with the Isles of
Scilly Link-up will be officially opened by Lady Mary Wilson, the widow of
former Prime Minister Harold Wilson, who was passionately committed to the
development of new technology
High-speed broadband communications will
bring together schools in two of the most remote locations in the British Isles
as BT delivers on its promise of making broadband almost universally available
across the UK. A link-up between Five Islands School, on the Isles of Scilly,
and Baltasound Junior High School, on the northern tip of the Shetland Islands,
marks the success of BT's £1.5 billion broadband investment programme,
which has involved the upgrading of more than 5,200 BT exchanges.
Across the UK, 99.8 per cent of homes and businesses are now connected
to a broadband-equipped exchange. On Thursday October 6, the link-up between
the two remote communities will be officially declared open by one of the Isles
of Scilly's most famous residents, Lady Mary Wilson, widow of former Prime
Minister Harold Wilson.
Her husband was passionately committed to the
UK being a world leader in the development of new technology. He coined the
phrase 'white heat of technology' more than 40 years ago and his government
created the first Ministry of Technology. The two schools - further apart than
London to Venice - are to join together in a twinning arrangement sponsored by
BT Broadband. During the next 12 months, they will use sophisticated broadband
technology to share news and information.
The twinning coincides with
BT equipping its most south westerly exchange, Scillonia, and northerly
exchange, Baltasound, with broadband. The schools, 1004 miles apart by road and
ferry, are among the smallest of their type in the country. Baltasound, on
Unst, the most northerly island in the UK, has 110 nursery, primary and
secondary schoolchildren. It is on the same latitude as Southern Greenland and
the nearest railway station is in Norway.
Scilly's Five Islands School
has 250 primary and secondary pupils at five locations or 'bases,' of which the
smallest is on the island of St Agnes. The St Agnes 'base' has just three
pupils. The three St Agnes pupils - Josie Burns, aged seven, and Xanthe Hicks
and Jacob Burns, both aged four - will take part in the first link-up with
Baltasound Junior High School youngsters.
The BT Broadband sponsorship
includes both communities receiving a variety of broadband equipment, such as
laptop computers and webcams. Ian Livingston, chief executive for BT Retail,
said: "The link-up will be a fascinating opportunity for children in two of the
UK's most remote communities to be able to share views and information.
Broadband brings amazing possibilities like this, which would have been
unthinkable a few years ago. This is a great example of BT connecting
people’s worlds."
Andrew Penman, head teacher for the Five Islands
School, said: "We are all very excited by the opportunities offered by this
link-up. The Isles of Scilly is a wonderful place to live, but of course its
remoteness can sometimes pose challenges, particularly for our young people
who, like any youngsters, are very keen to learn about what is happening
elsewhere in the world. "High-speed broadband will play an ever more important
role in the children's education, helping them to access information and share
experiences in a way which would have been impossible not so many years ago."
Andrew Spence, head teacher at Baltasound Junior High School, said: "We
are very pleased to be able to benefit from this project. Pupils in remote
schools can now have another way of keeping in touch with the world outside.
And it may be in the future that they can use broadband technology for distance
learning, video conferencing or in setting-up a local business. It' s important
for our pupils to be able to use new technology as it comes along." Lady Mary
Wilson said: "My husband understood the significance of technology. As leader
of the opposition in 1963 he predicted, in his famous 'White Heat' speech, the
sort of technology being used by these schools. "Shortly afterwards, as Prime
Minister, he created the first Ministry of Technology. He would be delighted to
see his predictions of 42 years ago - of technology helping every aspect of
life from business through education to culture and pleasure - becoming a
reality, accessible to all."
About the Schools
Unst, the
most northerly island in the UK, has a Junior High School at Baltasound, (which
combines nursery, primary and secondary schools) and a further primary school
at Uyeasound at the southern end of the island. Secondary pupils stay at
Baltasound school until the age of 16 and then attend boarding school on the
Shetland mainland.
Five Islands School on the Isles of Scilly, has 250
primary and secondary schoolchildren at five bases, the largest of which are
Carn Gwavel and Carn Thomas on the main island of St Mary's. Of the remainder,
17 pupils attend the Tresco base, 13 attend St Martin's and just three attend
St Agnes, the most south westerly island.
BT Broadband
|
|
|
|
Broadband Checker
Before
ordering broadband, we invite you to check your telephone number for
broadband availability and the
best broadband deals for your
area:
Broadband deals via
Google
Broadband
news
Broadband
service news
Broadband
company news
Broadband
general news
Other broadband
news feeds
Broadband service
providers
AOL |
BT Broadband |
Homecall
HomeChoice |
NTL |
Onetel
TalkTalk |
Telewest |
Tesco |
Tiscali
UK Online |
The
Utility Warehouse
Virgin |
Wanadoo |
