St Silas is an iconic Victorian church over-looking Blackburn town centre.

St Silas Church Tower

Over the years, St Silas Church has seen many initiatives to modernise it, with the installation of central heating, kitchen, toilets, modern lighting and the creation of an open community space at the back of the church, over twenty years ago, all of which presented challenges at the time.

The latest challenge has been to install Wi-Fi in the Church.

The church has always aspired to be a community hub where local groups can meet and local community agencies provide support to their users, as well as providing spiritual and pastoral support to the care homes and individuals who are house-bound in the area.

Like many churches St Silas has tried to make the most of using online technology during the pandemic but the lack of Wi-Fi within the Church was a big limitation.

6G Internet are a local Internet Service Provider. Over the last year or so they have been working with schools and charities in the area to set up free home connections for families struggling to get online. Through one of those charities, Age UK, 6G Internet were introduced to Sheelagh Aston, the Priest in charge, at St Silas Church.

Over the summer, the Church leadership team, along with Jill Cowgill of architects NWDC, worked hard to overcome the challenges inherent when working in a Grade II listed building and, in October the installation was successfully completed.

6G Internet Receiver

Both installation and ongoing usage has been provided entirely free of charge by 6G Internet as part of their “internet for everyone” initiative.

Sheelagh is excited by the new opportunities that online connectivity opens up “We will be able to live stream our Sunday Service to create an inclusive bond between those who are in church and those at home thus breaking down the feelings of loneliness and IT group is already experimenting with online training sessions which could be broadcast from church to remote participants”

There is a strong bond between the Church and local schools and Sheelagh added, “We are now working with our schools to explore how short virtual tours or lessons can be streamed to them at a time when visits are difficult.”

Ian Clough who leads the 6G Internet digital inclusion projects said, “the work with St Silas is a new strand of our “internet for everyone” initiative. For over a year now we have worked with schools and charities, aiming to make sure that everyone in Blackburn and Darwen has access to a free basic internet connection at home. The new opportunities created by connecting community buildings like St Silas are really exciting and I believe that their hard work has created a template that others can follow.”

Contact

Rev Sheelagh Aston

Priest in Charge

St Silas, Blackburn

stsilasblackburn@gmail.com

Healthy Churches, Transforming Communities

Diocese of Blackburn

Ian Clough

6G Internet

Ian.clough@6gdsi.co.uk

The Blackburn based Inspire Motivate Overcome (IMO) charity initially began its work in 2006.

Its overriding aim was and remains, “to work with and enable communities to improve their quality of life and be more resilient.“

Two of the key areas that it focuses its attention on are Health & Wellbeing and Education & Employability.

Internet Access is essential

As both access to health services and access to educational resources have increasingly become an “on line” only option, having an internet connection at home has moved rapidly from being a “nice to have,” to an essential resource.

There are barriers for some families in Blackburn to access the internet

For many families on lower or uncertain incomes however, cost and long-term contract has proved an insurmountable barrier, a problem brought into sharp focus by the various Covid-19 restrictions.

6G Internet has always adopted the principle of “internet for all” and has committed to make up to 20% of its network available free of charge.

Linking with IMO is therefore a natural fit.

“Covid-19 pandemic has highlighted the prevalence of digital exclusion within our communities, especially amongst vulnerable groups. So, being able to work with “6G Internet” to identify and secure free internet access and keep them connected has been invaluable to the families we are supporting through this crisis.”

Stephen Jones – Chief Executive IMO

Working to provide internet access to families across Blackburn

6G Internet are delighted to be working with IMO and will continue to do so to achieve the shared aim of ensuring that the internet is a resource for all.

If you would like to work with our “6G Internet for everyone” programme, please contact us at https://www.6gdsi.co.uk/contact or email Ian Clough at ian.clough@6gdsi.co.uk.

Helping Age UK to Bridge the Digital Divide

Age UK are committed to providing life enhancing services to older people in the community.

Befriending services, advice services and neighbourly volunteering are just a few examples of the fantastic help they provide for the elderly.

Their digital buddies support older people in becoming more tech savvy, which has never been more relevant and important as now, during the current pandemic.

With this in mind, 6G Internet identified a way to help older people who are digitally excluded and missing out on this valuable support.

John Verity, Age UK Blackburn and Darwen Digital Inclusion Development Manager said;

“Lack of affordable broadband is one of the main factors that leads to digital exclusion amongst older people. Working with 6G Internet as partners has enabled Age UK Blackburn with Darwen to help older people to get connected free of charge. This allows them to experience the many benefits of digital technology such as keeping in touch with friends and family, shopping online and using health services online”

According to the Office for National Statistics, over two thirds of the digitally excluded are over 65 years of age.

6G Internet believe there should be Internet for All and work tirelessly to achieve this by donating 20% of internet bandwidth to disadvantaged and socially excluded groups.

Many essential services are now carried out online, such as ordering prescriptions and applying for benefits. Older people without internet access, are being left behind and are at huge disadvantage compared with their online peers.

6G Internet’s free internet, along with the IT courses provided by Age UK, mean that people have access to the necessary resources and don’t need to feel out of their depth online.

Once connected, Social Networks become within reach. This means the elderly can stay in touch with loved ones, swap photos and Social Isolation can feel that little bit less lonely.

6G Internet are committed to bridging the digital divide and look forward to a future where there is 6G Internet for everyone.

High Speed Broadband is coming to Bolton, Preston and Hyndburn

This is exciting stuff. After a very successful Blackburn launch, we are now rolling out our super-fast broadband network to more towns across the North West.

The expansion is starting in Bolton, Preston and Hyndburn, with plenty more towns and cities in the pipeline.

You might have already read about the new roll-out in a couple of places, but the general upshot is that an additional 15,000 premises will be connected over the next few months alone.

There are a few reasons why we are getting a bit enthusiastic about this:

We know from Ofcom’s own research that a fast broadband network can benefit a town’s local economy to the tune of tens of millions of pounds and thousands of jobs.
The expansion is proof that there really is an appetite for our new generation of wireless broadband technology.
It’s another step towards our ambition of serving 4 million households by 2022.

Work is just beginning in these towns, with fibre-optic cables being installed via telegraph poles to wireless transmitters throughout the neighbourhoods. This can be done without any of the noise, disruption or expense of installing traditional fibre optic broadband technology.

The transmitters will then send super-fast broadband to receivers on each premise via radio wave, starting at 100 Mbps for £21 with nothing to pay upfront for eligible properties.

If you’re interested in seeing what the fuss is about, enter your details here and we’ll let you know once everything’s ready to go.

Digital inclusion in the spotlight

As more and more services move online, digital inclusion is a problem that is likely to become more pronounced for a significant section of the UK population. That’s because while the majority of Britain takes the internet for granted, there are still 11 million people lacking basic online skills.

According to OfCom

If you are elderly, a low-earner, unemployed or live in social housing, you are less likely to be able to access the internet from your home or have the digital skills to take advantage of being online.

ITV’s Tonight programme Visits project in conjunction with Leeds Council

Thankfully, this issue has been given oxygen by ITV’s Tonight programme, who visited a project that we have been involved in with Leeds City Council to combat digital exclusion by connecting two of the city’s tower blocks to free broadband.

The partnership is part of the council’s 100% Digital Leeds programme aimed at giving every resident the access and skills to make the most out of the internet.

Highspeed broadband delivered to a social housing project

Leeds City Council estimates 38% of its 57,000 social housing residences don’t have permanent access to the internet. As part of the 14 month trial, we connected 160 social housing residences to free wireless broadband. It is streamed to the Grayson Crest and Clyde Grange tower blocks via radio antenna and offers 5 Mbps broadband residents to log on whenever they want.

Feedback from residents connected to broadband as part of the project

It resulted in some absolutely brilliant feedback.

Grayson Crest resident Oliver had been searching for a job for three years without an internet connection. Four days after he was connected to 6G internet, he secured a job he found on Gumtree as a warehouse forklift driver.

He told us: “It’s the difference between being on £46 a week benefit and earning a good wage. £46 just goes in a day – I couldn’t do anything with my kids. Now I can take them swimming or to the seaside. I’ve started saving money for a better car and I can meet my friends without worrying about money.

“Without an internet connection, I was searching for a job by buying newspapers or going to the library. After three years it gets disheartening – you just give up. Phone credit wasn’t cheap – if you want unlimited internet you’re talking £30 a month, so it was even difficult being able to talk to friends on social media. Now I can use my laptop at home. It’s made a big difference.”

Our partner at Leeds City Council, tenant engagement manager Ian Montgomery, said: “We know people suffer from a lower quality of life as a result of being unable to access the social, educational, financial, recreational and health benefits of being online.

“By connecting these flats to the internet and supporting people to learn how to use the technology, we are helping residents to find improved deals and save money, apply for jobs, manage finances and maintain contact with family and friends. It also helps the council to be more efficient, as residents are able to access online services to claim benefits, report issues and make payments.”
Ian Montgomery – Tenant Engagement Manager – Leeds City Council

We are very proud of our work to connect more people to a better quality of life through free broadband. If you’re part of a local authority and interested in partnering with us, you can make an enquiry here.

Blackburn: Welcome to wireless

We are delighted to be able to announce that we are bringing gigabit-capable wireless broadband to Blackburn. After working closely with Blackburn with Darwen council, we can confirm that we will soon be beginning work to connect the entire town over the next 24 months.

Check if you can receive high speed broadband in Blackburn

Blackburn residents to receive fibre speed broadband

For the vast majority of Blackburn residents, this will be the first chance to access this type of technology, which will be capable of delivering speeds of up to 6,000 Mbps by 2025.

Introduction high speed broadband offers

Means Blackburn will be one of the first towns in the UK where residents have the option of gigabit fibre speeds as standard.

Quick & Easy network build

As we have mentioned in previous blogs, the way we roll-out our network means there is usually very little disruption to residents. However, we have put carefully thought-through plans in place with the council to ensure that this continues to be the case.

Fixed wireless fibre speed broadband gets to hard to reach places

There will be very little road-digging and most of our infrastructure can be installed within a day or two. We will have liaison officers on the ground during installation to make sure everything is going smoothly, and if there are any issues, residents will be able to call a helpline that will be dedicated to supporting them from the moment work begins.

We will continue to keep you updated as we get more confirmations, so keep an eye out. In the meantime, why not check if you’re eligible today.