Broadband in the Parish
Fed up with premium phone numbers?
24th September 2012: Landline alternatives for 0500, 0800, 0808, 0842, 0843, 0844, 0845, 0870, 0871, 0872 and 0873 numbers: see Say NO to premium phone numbers.
20th September 2012: Boxcom statement about security and ID see Boxcom and clear ID
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See the link and the the "How to escape your contract" section BT and price increases: January 2013 Please note: The prognosis from a very savvy villager and on the subject of keeping your present BT number is: BT may still make a charge to move the number to VoIP, but I think it's important that people don't cancel as soon as Gigaclear is working. The part about the number that's important is to have applied for the VoIP account stating your BT number you wish to use BEFORE you cancel BT, just in case they pull the plug before the VoIP provider gets their hands on the number. There's this 10 day window mentioned in the website piece, so my recommendation is: Once Gigaclear is installed and operational AND you've received your letter from BT informing you of the price hike, do the following: 1) Apply for a VoIP account, stating that you wish to use your BT number. 2) Contact BT to inform them that you wish to cancel, but make sure you tell them that you still wish to use the number. My only concern is that BT cancel household accounts before the VoIP people have completed their work. If you definitely intend to switch to VoIP you can get your VoIP account set up in advance of the BT letter with a temporary number (which you would get in any case to start with whilst they arrange the transfer) then, when the BT letter or email arrives, inform BT you want to cancel their contract and tell your VoIP provider to take over the number. This will give you the oportunity to run both telephone systems in parallel for a while and make sure the VoIP is working properly and giving you what you need. Paragraph number 50 in the BT Ts & Cs concerning this provision can be read here. |
Progress Update: 29th August 2012
Network Build & Installation Status Update
We are now at the end of week 4 of the build and I am delighted to say that we have made good progress. Much of the work has concentrated on the key routes which provide the backhaul (high speed connection) to the Internet and the links between the communities. We appreciate that whilst working in the highways we are causing inconvenience but our contractors try very hard to keep this to a minimum, and we thank you all for your continued patience and support whilst the works continue.
It is obvious to us that many residents are getting very excited about the incoming service and many have asked when their area will be served and when they will be switched on.
It is very hard to be accurate with a forecast as until you dig up a footway or road you truly do not know what you may find but in order to keep you updated here is an outline plan of what happens next:
The first objective is to get the cabinet (which is sited at the Appleton Tennis Club in Badswell Lane) connected to our backhaul so the equipment can be set up and proven ready for our demonstrations to you all in the village hall on the 8th September. Virtually all the backhaul cable is now laid with the last stretch down the south side of Netherton Road being laid this week along with its associated drops.
You will probably have noticed that although we have been reinstating the runs there are pits around the village which have not been filled in. The splicing team who join the fibre optic cables together are making their way round to all of these to make the necessary connections and once the joints are tested they will be filled in and reinstated.
Works completed: Cabinet and chamber build at the Appleton Tennis Club, Abingdon Rd Tubney, Southby Close, Whites Forge, Park Lane, Doctors Lane, Link between Besselsleigh and Eaton, Link between Eaton and Appleton, Link between Appleton and Fyfield, Netherton Road South section
Still to go (in approximate order of build): Link between Fyfield and Tubney, Netherton Road North section, Oaksmere, Fettiplace Close, Horseshoe Close, Eaton Road, Badwells Lane, Town Furlong, Eaton Village, Besselsleigh Village Subscribers who have had their CCP (Customer Connection Point) installed will start to be made live from the 2nd week of September.
At this point we will start shipping the self install kits to those households that have requested them. Please remember you have 3 choices for installation, please confirm your selection as soon as possible for those that have not done so already:
- Self Installation - please let me know what length of fibre cable you need to connect from your connection point to the location of your router in your property (e.g. 10, 25 or 50M)
- Local Electrician/Handyman e.g. James Mansfield - please let me know the length of fibre cable you need as above
- Boxcom Installation – their special offer for Appleton/Eaton residents of an installation for £85* for lengths of 25m will expire at the end of September – please let me know as soon as possible if you wish to use Boxcom.
I am pleased to confirm that we have had some very positive comments on the quality of the reinstatement of both grass and tarmac areas which is very pleasing and a credit to MKJ who are our main civils contractor on this project.
Apologies:
We would like to apologise to the residents of Fettiplace Close who we marked up and signposted 2 weeks ago, we realised a flaw in our plan and have been forced to put you back in the sequence, there were sound reasons and we will have you online soon.
*Please refer to the Boxcom Website for details of their special installation offer - http://www.boxcomngn.net/home-installation-service
Finally: please do come along to the Appleton Village Hall on Saturday 8th September 2012 when between 10:00am and 1:30pm Gigaclear will be demonstrating how to get the best from the ultrafast Broadband you will soon enjoy!
Joe Frost m: +44 7887 955093 Gigaclear www.gigaclear.com
With effect from Monday 30th July, Gigaclear will start the process leading to the connecting of fibre optic cables to households in Appleton and Eaton.
This will mean the digging of trenches in soft verges and taking up small sections of asphalt and concrete. Gigaclear and their contractors will advise households when they plan to undertake the work in their street/ road and request vehicles are not left parked on the verge or even beside the verge: equipment will, for example, have to progress along a pavement to drill a trench.
The main parish Gigaclear cabinet will be located in the Tennis Club car park – therefore the first signs of activity will be in Town Furlong and Badswell Lane. The contractor’s site office will be located in the Gow’s Christmas Barn car park along the Eaton Road and next to Hengrove House. The two main contractors are MKJ and TF Trenching.
Subject to the ground and weather conditions it is anticipated this work will be completed by mid September 2012.
If there are any issues anyone wishes to raise about the trenching work please phone Gigaclear's Operations Director, Ian Wakefield on 01865 591102. If there are any questions about the fibre optic connections and Superfast Broadband please call Joe Frost of Gigaclear on 07887 955093 or email him on joe.frost@gigaclear.com or see the websites www.gigaclear.com or www.appletonbroadband.co.uk
3rd July 2012: Possible connections in August 2012: Mesage from Ian Wakefield "The time table is to start on site in the last week of July. We will set up the site welfare facilities, be receiving materials, building the cabinet bases and chambers and in general be getting everything ready for construction to start in earnest from the first week in August. The build will then take 6 -8 weeks depending on weather and any other things that may be thrown at us with connections being potentially viable from Mid August."
| Connection routes: see the A3 hard copy of the fibre optic route to your house in the Appleton Community Shop. Any questions can be asked of Ian Wakefield on email ian.wakefield@gigaclear.com |
7th June 2012: Oxford Mail features Superfast Broadband in Appleton & Eaton see Oxford Mail Superfast Broadband
NEWS RELEASE! NEWS RELEASE! NEWS RELEASE!
28th May 2012: Ultrafast Internet at 1000 Mbps for Appleton & Eaton. Appleton & Eaton in Oxfordshire has chosen Gigaclear to provide their new Ultrafast Internet service. The new pure fibre network will deliver Internet access at up to 1000 Mbps to the 400 homes and businesses in the community, with 120 committed to take the £37 per month service.
Gigaclear’s service is delivered over a 1000 Mbps fibre connection. The standard service has a minimum of 10 Mbps reserved across the network for each customer, with the ability to burst up to 1000 Mbps on demand on a contended basis with other members of the community. This standard service costs £37 per month with a connection fee of £100 and a typical installation charge of £85, all including VAT.
Gigaclear has been working with Appleton Broadband Group and Appleton & Eaton Parish Council to reach the community. At the well attended village meeting in April, the overwhelming majority present showed their support for Gigaclear as a solution to their need for fast reliable Internet. In the following weeks at a series of local events, the community signed up to take the service. With 120 now committed, construction of the new buried fibre network will begin in July, with the first customers connected to their new Gigaclear Ultrafast Internet service in August.
"18 months ago the community developed an action plan that prioritised keeping our bus service, building a new playground and getting a decent Internet service. We have been researching for some time how to obtain fast and reliable broadband access for the whole community and the service that Gigaclear will deliver exceeds our expectations in terms of speed and future proofing" said David Hine of Appleton Broadband Group. He added "we are very excited about this service as for the first time ever we will have broadband that will be the envy of major cities, allowing local businesses and people working from home to perform as if they were city- or office-based and local residents will have access to a whole new world of entertainment, communication and education."
Gigaclear supplies the fibre to the property and Internet access. A constellation of “Over the Top” applications and services meets the customer’s needs for telephony (e.g. Voipfone, Vonage, Skype, Google Talk), entertainment (e.g. LoveFilm, iPlayer, Blinkbox, Netflix, Roku) and all the other uses that you can make of a modern high speed communications connection for work, education, communication and play. een approached by over 60 communities to explore whether they could receive a similar service.
Notes for editors
1. Gigaclear builds and operates pure fibre networks in communities with a high proportion of home workers and telecommuters, where the current network does not deliver the performance they need.
2. Gigaclear built its first network in Hambleton in Rutland in October 2011 in conjunction with its subsidiary, Rutland Telecom.
3. Gigaclear has been approached by over 60 communities to explore whether they could receive a similar service.
4. Matthew Hare founded Gigaclear following the sale of the managed communications services business Community Internet Group to MDNX in September 2010.
5. The business is privately owned and funded.
Further information contact
Matthew Hare - Chief Executive, Gigaclear Limited
Website: www.gigaclear.com
Email: matthew.hare@gigaclear.com
Mobile: 07768-140180
Order Form and cheque (£100): Gigaclear Order Form Link here to Gigaclear Order Form and this can either be taken to the Appleton Community Shop in an envelope clearly Marked for ther attention of "Gigaclear: Broadband" or sent to Gigaclear Service Centre, 4 Queen Stree, Uppingham LE15 9QR
| 19th April 2012: Link to Questions and Answers (FAQs) on Questions & Answers on Broadband website |
18th April 2012: Broadband Clinic to be held at The Plough: 23rd April 2012 between 7:00pm and 8:30pm. No appointment necessary, please come and raise your concerns and ask your questions.
14th April 2012: Packed Village Hall for Broadband meeting. About 90 people gathered in the Appleton Village Hall on Saturday to hear the Broadband proposals for the parish. After an introduction by David Hine, Matthew Hare, CEO Gigaclear, and his team of experts presented the Gigaclear solution. Several questions were raised by the audience and there will be a full report of the meeting shortly. David Hine said: “The Broadband Group was delighted with the turnout on a Saturday morning and I believe the meeting was very informative and constructive.
"We are going to clarify some issues of price and technical detail so that people can understand the cost savings that can potentially be made by combining internet and voice telephony. I must stress; we only have until the end of April 2012 to make the decisions about the Gigaclearcsolution. If we do obtain agreement from 120 households, Gigaclear have said they will connect within about three months. If we do not receive this level of support we will have to live with the present rather variable and poor performance. The Broadband Group urges all resident to consider seriously the proposition and visit the interactive website at www.appletonbroadband.co.uk for information.”