Friday 28 July 11am – 4pm
Tag: technology
Azad Adam: From homeless in London to leading digital revolution in Muirhouse
A computing student is using the grim experience of being homeless in London to drive his ambition of helping North Edinburgh’s jobseekers get to grips with digital technology.
Continue reading Azad Adam: From homeless in London to leading digital revolution in Muirhouse
Students harness tech to tackle homelessness
Twenty Edinburgh Napier students took part in a 24 hour ‘Hackathon’ at Edinburgh Napier University on Friday 3 to Saturday 4 February. Cyrenians, Bright Red Triangle, Scottish Institute for Enterprise, and IBM co-hosted the event, along with staff from Edinburgh Napier University who also provided the facilities. Continue reading Students harness tech to tackle homelessness
Planting the STEM seed at Craigie
STEM: That’s Science, Technology, Engineering, Maths – but you knew that, of course!
A team of employees from Edinburgh electronics company Leonardo (better known to us old-timers as Ferranti’s!) are planting a ‘STEM’ seed that could lead to improved career prospects for Craigroyston Community High School pupils. Continue reading Planting the STEM seed at Craigie
Help is at hand: council launches new Twitter service
@edinhelp social media tool to help Edinburgh’s residents online
The City of Edinburgh Council has launched a new dedicated customer service Twitter account, @edinhelp Continue reading Help is at hand: council launches new Twitter service
Get super connected: still time to take up broadband offer
Small to medium sized businesses in Edinburgh, the Lothians, Fife and the Scottish Borders are being reminded that there is still time to apply for vouchers, which could connect them to superfast broadband.
The scheme has helped 442 businesses in Edinburgh with superfast connections so far. To date there has been a lot of interest in the scheme and businesses are encouraged to apply before funds run out.
Funding for the project is part of the UK Government’s £150 million super connected cities programme being delivered locally by City of Edinburgh Council.
Vouchers are awarded to businesses to help cover the installation costs of connecting to superfast broadband services up to the value of £3,000. Businesses pay the VAT costs and the ongoing subscription.
To qualify for a voucher, organisations should be small to medium sized located in the City of Edinburgh Council area, have fewer than 250 employees and a turnover of less than £40m. Further information and an application form can be found here.
Cllr Frank Ross, Convener of the Economy Committee, said: “The vouchers will provide much needed financial assistance to small to medium sized businesses in the city who don’t already have a fast connection. We have worked hard to secure this opportunity for local businesses and I would strongly recommend those without a fast connection apply for a voucher as high grade broadband is more reliable, faster and it will make your business more efficient and competitive.”
Further information
- The voucher scheme is part of the City of Edinburgh Council’s Connected Capital Programme, which aims to improve Edinburgh’s broadband connectivity. Follow on Twitter @connectedinburg.
- Businesses in Lothians, Fife and the Scottish Borders areas can access the vouchers through the Edinburgh scheme
- In the vast majority of cases the voucher should cover the total installation cost but where it doesn’t, businesses will have to cover the difference themselves.
- Edinburgh’s Connected Capital Programme is part of the£150m Super Connected Cities Programme which is being delivered through Broadband Delivery UK, which is part of the UK Government’s Department of Culture, Media and Sport. Other projects forming part ofthe Connected Capital Programme are an outdoor wireless network delivered though a service concession contract, wireless hotspots in a number of public buildings. Wi-fi on the trams and buses is already in place
Superfast broadband is defined as speed of at least 30 Megabytes per Second (Mbps) and ultrafast is defined 80 to 100+ Mbps.
Getting communities connected
More than three million homes and businesses have been reached by the Westminster government’s nationwide rollout of superfast broadband, figures published today reveal. The announcement follows news that libraries are to share in a £1.5 million Scottish Government investment to enhance digital participation.
The rollout is delivering superfast access – internet speeds greater than 24 Mbps – to those properties not covered by existing commercial networks and is on track to take superfast access to 95 per cent of the UK by 2017. More than four out of five UK homes and businesses already have access to superfast speeds, and the rollout is currently reaching an additional 40,000 homes and businesses every week.
This comes following recent news that BT will make up to £129m available to extend the Government-led rollout of superfast broadband across the UK.
Culture Secretary John Whittingdale said: “Reaching three million properties is a huge achievement. Our rollout of superfast broadband is transforming lives up and down the country as every day thousands more homes and businesses are gaining access to superfast speeds.
“It’s fantastic to see that the rollout of superfast broadband is now delivering for customers and for the taxpayer. The levels of people taking up superfast broadband in areas where we invested public money are beyond our expectations, and BT is now reimbursing the public purse to deliver further coverage across the UK. This now means that BT will be providing up to £129m cashback for some of the most hard to reach areas.”
The additional funding will be made available to local authorities to reinvest the money in providing further superfast broadband coverage to even more homes and businesses, and much earlier than originally planned.
The money is being made available as a result of a clause in the contracts BT agreed with government and local authorities that allows the funding BT has received to be returned or reinvested into further coverage if take-up is better than the 20 per cent expected in BT’s original business case. The higher take up rate to date has resulted in BT making a new business case assumption of reaching 30 per cent take-up in these areas.
In Scotland, more than 394,000 homes and businesses have been reached by the rollout of fibre-optic cable.
Gavin Patterson, CEO BT Group, said: “The UK is making great progress with fibre broadband. Twenty three million premises are covered by BT’s open access network, with three million of those enabled under the BDUK programme. Our Openreach engineers have worked tirelessly to connect some of the most remote parts of the UK, from Shetland and Hebrides to the moors of southwest England.
“The public have responded by taking up fibre in large numbers, and that’s good news for those areas that haven’t been reached yet. It means additional funds are being released which will enable us to go even further at no extra cost to the taxpayer and earlier than expected.”
Environment Secretary Elizabeth Truss said: “Our continuing investment in speedier broadband will unleash the full potential of our countryside – creating jobs, boosting exports and improving the quality of life for people living in rural communities.
“By ensuring everyone has access to the same technology and services we can boost the productivity of rural areas, making it as easy to open and expand a business in some of the most beautiful parts of our countryside as it is in our cities.”
Almost £18million funding is being made available to accelerate high speed broadband roll-out for Scotland’s rural communities.
The early benefit comes from the success of the Scottish Government-backed £410million Digital Scotland Superfast Broadband (DSSB) programme, which has now reached over 365,000 homes and businesses from the Shetland Isles to Dumfries and Galloway.
And Scotland’s Deputy First Minister John Swinney yesterday announced £1.5 million to boost free Wi-Fi in public spaces.
The £1.5 million funding for 2015/16 is part of the Scottish Government’s wider drive to enhance digital participation, improve rural connectivity and the uptake of online public services across Scotland.
Deputy First Minister John Swinney visited Ullapool library in the MacPhail Centre to see at first-hand the impact of the public library Wi-Fi programme to date.
He wanted to find out how people are benefitting from freely available connectivity and met trainers and participants in a ‘Get To Know Your Techno’ group, an innovative digital participation initiative which has seen young people teach older people digital skills and the benefits of being online.
Mr Swinney, said: “It’s wonderful to be here in Ullapool to announce our public wireless programme which includes a second phase of funding for free public Wi-Fi in libraries. This supports the promotion of the wider economic, social and cultural benefits from public spaces and has the potential to attract new audiences to our public libraries.
“Helping libraries and other public spaces to provide free connectivity will be increasingly important as the use of smartphones and tablets continues to increase and the appetite for internet access on the move grows.
“Libraries don’t just provide access to reading material they play a crucial role in providing access to IT, improving attainment, supporting children in the early years and empowering communities. We want to help libraries to empower communities, tackle inequality and boost the economy, as well as provide more people with opportunities to learn and to experience local heritage and culture.
“The latest research from Ofcom shows that more Scots than ever before are using smart devices to access the internet – almost 40% say their smartphone is their main way of accessing the internet and indicates that half the adults in Scotland own a tablet. The Scottish Government is committed to improving and extending access to public Wi-Fi in support of our world class digital vision where people can connect anywhere, with any device, at any time by 2020.
“Ullapool is already benefitting from free public Wi-Fi and the ‘Get To Know Your Techno’ group is a great example of how easier access to Wi-Fi improves digital participation across our communities and can bring younger and older members of the community together.”
Digital Information Day for MHA tenants
Muirhouse Housing Association tenants have an opportunity to brush up their technology skills at event at Muirhouse Millennium Community Centre tomorrow (writes James McGinty):
Come and find out more about using phones,tablets and computers with the M.H.A. Team at Muirhouse Millennium Community Centre (Lounge/Cafe area) on Tuesday (9 June) from 11am – 1pm.
This is an event for M.H.A.Tenants only.
An expert from the field of computers will be there joining the Team and if you attend your name will be entered to a lucky dip to win a tablet!
Talking Tech during National Digital Learning Week
Education Secretary Angela Constance has called on all Scottish schools to make the most of opportunities offered by digital learning, as National Digital Learning Week continues.
Ms Constance was speaking as she visited Mauricewood Primary School in Penicuik to see how technology is being used to support learning in the school.
National Digital Learning Week (2-6 March) highlights how learners and teachers are using digital technologies in schools across Scotland.
At Mauricewood, Ms Constance saw a presentation about ‘The Moscars’, a project where groups of pupils used technology to develop a short film. She also chatted to pupils who are using technology in a variety of ways to find out more about other countries and their cultures.
She said: “We want learners and teachers in Scotland to take full advantage of the opportunities offered by technology in order to raise attainment, ambition and opportunities for all. Technology is all around us and we want all of our schools to tap into its rich potential for learning.
“There’s exciting events going on every day throughout National Digital Learning Week and I am delighted to see some great examples for myself at Mauricewood.
“At Mauricewood and in other schools across Scotland, there’s great examples of technology being woven into day-to-day learning, bringing subjects to life and opening up opportunities for research, collaboration, communication and creativity.
“This week also marks the start of a National Digital Learning Community, where we want teachers and educators across Scotland to continue conversations and reflections about digital learning, and we want this conversation to continue long beyond this week of activity.”
Activities are ongoing throughout the week, including TeachMeets in a number of authorities for teachers to share good practice, practical innovations and personal insights in teaching with technology, GlowTV events and daily blog updates at
:https://blogs.glowscotland.org.uk/glowblogs/ndlf/
Conversation are also continuing all week on Twitter using the hashtag #digilearnscot.
A video message from Ms Constance, marking the start of Digital Learning Week, can be accessed at
Meet beats tweet when looking for work
‘Getting out there and speaking with people is just as important as being online’ – Grahame Smith, Scottish STUC
Technology may have invaded every aspect of our lives, but new research shows a personal touch is still the best when it comes to getting a job.
The 2014 Employer Perspectives Survey, released today by government skills experts the UK Commission for Employment and Skills (UKCES), shows that despite the meteoric rise of social media, just 7% of employers say they’ve used it to recruit new staff.
Based on interviews with more than 18,000 employers across the UK, the study reveals that recruitment methods involving the human touch, such as filling vacancies through word of mouth and personal recommendation are still widely used by employers.
Just over one in ten (11%) of employers said they used work experience as a recruitment tool, whilst the number offering a job as a result of a speculative enquiry has more than doubled.
Although the findings may be welcomed by parents who are unconvinced that their offspring’s broadband consumption actually equates to job hunting, the researchers say the findings point to a greater need to hone jobseekers’ social skills.
Grahame Smith, a Commissioner at UKCES and General Secretary of the Scottish TUC said:
Digital skills are crucial in the modern workplace, and while many young people excel in this area, these findings show how important it is for jobseekers to also develop their personal presence. Getting out there and speaking with people is just as important as being online, but it’s more difficult for the digital generation.
That’s why it’s important to break down the barriers between education and employers. By offering simple things like business mentoring, careers talks, work experience and mock interviews, businesses can make a huge difference to the future of young people. Our research shows that whilst only a minority of employers currently work with schools and colleges in this way, the good news is that those that do say it’s easy and rewarding.
Michael Davis, chief executive of UKCES, said:
For those looking for work, making use of social media when job hunting can bring a world of information at the click of a mouse, but when it comes to making that all important first impression it seems there’s no substitute for legwork.
This research shows that what really matters to employers is an opportunity to get face to face with candidates, and get a real understanding of how they tick and what they can offer.
For employers it’s important to not become over-dependent on one form of recruitment. Our research shows that word of mouth is still commonly used to hire staff – but this risks missing out on a huge talent pool just because people don’t happen to be plugged into the right professional networks.
By striking a balance, both sides can benefit. Creating strong links with local education providers is just one way of achieving this, allowing employers to see first-hand what young people can offer, while simultaneously giving young people opportunity to build crucial contacts.
Other findings from the report include:
- businesses in London and the south-east are most likely to recruit a young person – 32% of employers have recruited a young person in the past 12 months.
- businesses in the East Midlands, the south-east and the south-west are most likely to have recruited an older person (aged over 50) with 33% of employers reporting they’ve taken on an older member of staff in the past 12 months.
- nearly half (49%) of hotels and restaurants have recruited young people in the past year, compared with just 13% of employers in the utilities sector.