It s a very exciting time for us all. Chet Patel, Regional Director for London chet.patel@bt.com.

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1 Our half- year financial results highlighted the fact that our fibre network now passes more than 17million premises, with more than 2million homes and businesses using our fibre based services. In London over 2.6 million premises are now passed which will rise further to 3.1 million by next Spring. Also noted alongside the commercial rollout was the great progress with our BDUK partnerships - you can read about some of these and case studies of how SMEs are reaping the rewards of fibre technology in this issue. The success of BT Sport, with the headquarters in Hackney, was also highlighted, which is not only good news for sports fans but also has the benefit of driving broadband take up which can only have a positive impact across the region. You may also be aware that Ofcom has just released their latest UK Infrastructure Report. This report provides a very comprehensive review of actual UK communication infrastructure as of today. It highlights the strong position of the UK compared to major EU countries, and the US in particular, against the key government targets of SFBB coverage, take up and overall speed. The report also highlights that most of the growth in coverage is a result of BT s continued investment in fibre and recognise that the BDUK programme will help to address this going forward. But it s not just about broadband - we take our social responsibilities seriously at every level of engagement. We are working with organisations across the UK to help people overcome the digital divide and providing the technology and support for initiatives such as BBC Children in Need, which is coordinated from the BT Tower in London. It s a very exciting time for us all. Chet Patel, Regional Director for London chet.patel@bt.com. New postcode checker for fibre broadband Openreach s recently launched new-look super-fast broadband web page now gives customers a better idea of when their exchange will be upgraded. The postcode checker which tells users when exchanges in their area are due to have fibre broadband equipment installed now offers more precise information about the status of their own local exchange. Instead of telling users about all of the exchanges in their area, the postcode checker narrows it down to the exchange that serves them, annotated with the symbol that applies to the current super-fast status of the exchange. This gives a much clearer picture of whether they are likely to be able to receive fibre services. The checker will provide the information required for 99 per cent of enquiries the exceptions being where postcodes straddle a number of exchange boundaries, as they do in Shropshire and Wales. The new web page also features a list of all internet service providers offering fibrebased broadband services on the Openreach network, plus a new don t let your internet connection hold you back video animation. In addition, it has been made more mobilefriendly, so it can be viewed on phones and tablets more easily. The web page now attracts around 200,000 visitors, and delivers around 25,000 clickthroughs to ISP websites every month. Check it out at co.uk Regional Director s Message New postcode checker for fibre broadband Super-fast plans unveiled for thousands more London premises New research shows fibre network boosting local economy Small businesses making it big with fibre broadband Power of fibre broadband feature on YouTube Young people given a sporting chance Disabled people still facing digital divide Recognition for young Apprentices BT volunteers win support for community groups

2 Super-fast plans unveiled for thousands more London premises The company has announced a further expansion of high-speed fibre broadband in Greater London, with around 94,000 more homes and businesses across the city set to benefit. The plans include a substantial investment in making the technology more widely available in 80 areas including Bayswater, Earls Court, Holborn, Shoreditch and Vauxhall which are already or due to be connected. In addition, around 500 premises in Canary Wharf will be able to enjoy ultrafast speeds thanks to a new deployment of Fibre to the Premises (FTTP) technology. We expect these to be the final communities in Greater London to be included in our 2.5 billion commercial roll-out of fibre broadband in the UK. Future announcements will focus on locations where fibre coverage is to be expanded even further via partnerships with the public sector and local communities. Openreach will carry out work to connect the areas between now and the end of spring 2014, subject to planning and technical constraints. Around 2.6 million premises in Greater London already have access to fibre broadband, and completion of the upgrades will take the total to over 3 million. Chet Patel, BT Regional Director, said: This is an exciting time for London s digital future, with widespread availability of fibre broadband services now a reality for millions of local homes. With this further fibre broadband investment in communities across the city, we hope even more local people will soon experience the difference for themselves by joining the 1.7 million UK homes and businesses already using the technology. Our fibre footprint currently passes more than 16 million UK homes and businesses. It is due to pass two-thirds of the country s premises around 19 million by the end of spring 2014, at least 18 months ahead of the original timetable. Openreach is primarily deploying Fibre to the Cabinet (FTTC) technology, which provides download speeds of up to 80Mbps and upload speeds of up to 20Mbps. However, it is also making Fibre to the Premises (FTTP) technology, which offers the top current download speed of 330Mbps, commercially available on demand in certain areas where fibre broadband has been rolled out. According to the regulator Ofcom, the current average UK residential broadband download speed is 14.7Mbps. Unlike other companies, Openreach offers fibre broadband access to all service providers on an open, wholesale basis, underpinning a competitive market. For further information on the Openreach programme, visit co.uk New research shows fibre network boosting local economy New independent research by SERIO at Plymouth University and Buckman Associates shows that the fibre network in Cornwall is already providing a major economic boost to local small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) - making it one of the best connected areas in Britain and the best connected rural region in Europe. Early findings from the study revealed that after 12 months, 83 per cent of them were saving time and money thanks to the faster speeds and innovative services that fibre broadband enables. In fact, six out of every 10 (58 per cent) SMEs surveyed said their business is growing because of the new technology, whilst more than a quarter (26 per cent) have either created or safeguarded jobs as a direct result of the efficiency and innovation that super-fast broadband encourages. In addition, over a third of businesses participating in the study (37.5 per cent) reported that super-fast broadband had helped their business to generate new sales, with a quarter (24 per cent) of that group pointing to new trade overseas. Nigel Ashcroft, Superfast Cornwall programme director for the Cornwall Development Company, said: The economic benefits of the infrastructure investment will grow over time, but we have encouraging early signs that we are moving in the right direction in Cornwall. Given the challenging economic conditions for SMEs, it is great news that businesses are growing, generating new sales and creating jobs for the Cornwall economy. More than 35,000 local homes and businesses are already taking advantage of the faster speeds, including an estimated 4,130 SMEs. The Superfast Cornwall project is on track to deliver fibre broadband to 95 per cent (originally 80 per cent) of the region, as well as the Isles of Scilly, by the end of It is also aiming to boost speeds for the remaining 5 per cent of premises (about 13,000) by deploying alternative technologies.

3 Small businesses making it big with fibre broadband Businesses all over the UK are now seeing the benefits of upgrading to fibre broadband. And for small and medium enterprises (SMEs), faster speeds have transformed the way they work and their relationships with their clients, as two satisfied customers explain below. Brian Rees is company chairman of the if Agency, an integrated creative agency based in South Manchester that delivers effective online and offline campaigns for retail, leisure, finance and other business clients across the country. When we set up six years ago, we quickly embraced first generation broadband with ADSL that ran at 5Mbps downstream and 800Kbps upstream. This helped but it wasn t a full answer. Large files still couldn t be transferred efficiently and many chunky pieces of artwork were biked up and down motorways, adding risk, time and cost to jobs. We understood that we needed better connections to compete successfully against nationally-networked agencies, and to work more effectively with our blue-chip clients. Our IT consultant outlined the benefits we could gain from fibre broadband with a superfast connection. We found that BT was offering its new BT Infinity services in the region and responded immediately to its customer marketing. After two days of installation work in November 2010, we have never looked back. Using fibre connections, we are more responsive than ever, and can now zap 45Mbps downstream and about 13Mbps up. We worried about the cost and possible inconvenience, but this game-changing improvement in the service we can offer has not cost us a premium, and we didn t suffer any disruption to our business. We understand that our connections are the platform for our continuing success. We always keep a close eye on BT s plans and developments so we re best positioned to take advantage of the latest technologies in our ever-changing and furiously competitive business. Stuart Landreth is one of the founders and directors of Northumberland-based BeeBox Systems, which provides background music systems and digital signage to bars, clubs, hotels, restaurants and family entertainment centres across the North East and, increasingly, throughout the country. The traditional industry model for providing music services still widely in use today is particularly slow and inflexible. The service provider receives new material from the content provider, processes it onto a computer, burns it to a CD, and then sends it by post to the venue for the landlord to upload locally. It takes at least a week to complete the end-toend process when nothing goes wrong. Using fibre broadband, we upload new content to our servers as it arrives from our providers. Every night, each customer s system automatically downloads a scheduled daily update that includes new releases and any requests that they have made. If anything goes wrong or our customer needs a last-minute change, our fibre connection allows us to fix the problem remotely, in real time, often while the customer is still on the phone. Super-fast fibre has transformed the range and quality of services we can offer. We have two BT Infinity lines with a custom-designed router that helps to load balance our needs for fast content turnaround, and are moving away from desktop-based software to a web-based and cloud-based management system so that we can work from anywhere, at any time. We no longer experience capacity constraints that affect our general office systems, so we use all our time far more effectively. We automate where we can to add new services, and to keep our costs low and prices competitive. If your business has received a boost from fibre broadband, and you would like your story to be featured as a case study in a future edition of InTouch, we would love to hear from you. Please contact regions.comms@bt.com Power of fibre broadband featured on YouTube The winning entries in a short story competition held in Northern Ireland have been turned into thoughtprovoking films on the power of fibre broadband and they can now be found on YouTube. Northern Ireland Broadband s Super Short competition challenged teenage citizens to write a 500-word story illustrating how fibre broadband can transform people s lives. Take a look at these inspiring videos they really help bring the story to life. Fourteen-year-old Enniskillen student Dorothy McDowell s film can be viewed here. Twelveyear-old Lisburn student Amy Warke s film can be viewed here. Another inspiring video available on YouTube has been produced, capturing the great work that is going on in Cornwall via the Get IT Together programme to help local people take their first steps to get online. You can view the video on the Better Future YouTube channel here.

4 Young people given a sporting chance An exciting new venture between BT and its BT Sport partners and Comic Relief is using the power of sport to help disadvantaged young people both here in the UK and around the world. The Supporters Club has been set up to raise money to fund the coaches, mentors and teachers that these young people need to help them to fulfil their potential. When customers sign up to BT Sport through our call centres, bt.com or www. thesupportersclub.org, they are being invited to make a recurring 1, 3 or 5 monthly donation to The Supporters Club, collected via their BT bills. However, people who haven t signed up to BT Sport but wish to contribute can do so through our website as well. BT have donated 500,000 from various initiatives to kick things off and will match every 1 given by customers up to the first 1 million. In addition, we are covering the running costs of the fund so that 100 percent of donations will go straight to The Supporters Club, which will be managed by Comic Relief. The scheme aims to support initiatives both in the UK and overseas that utilise the power of sport to help disadvantaged young people improve their lives. These include projects that boost enrolment and achievement in school; reduce levels of exploitation and abuse; secure jobs; improve health and wellbeing; and heighten confidence and self-esteem. We will be regularly updating our website and producing TV programmes featuring projects funded by The Supporters Club, which will be broadcast on BT Sport. Business responsibility matters to BT, and social responsibility is a central part of our business strategy. The Supporters Club as an effective way for us to work hand in hand with our customers and our employees to make a real difference to disadvantaged young people. Already, thousands of customers and BT employees have signed up to donate to The Supporters Club, bringing in around 300,000 a year, which BT will match adding a further 300,000 in the pot. To find out more about the scheme, visit www. sport.bt.com Disabled people still facing digital divide The potential for mainstream technology to transform the lives of the 11 million disabled people in the UK remains largely untapped, according to research funded by BT s Connected Society programme. In a new report, disability charity Scope and the Royal College of Art s Helen Hamlyn Centre for Design argue that disabled people still encounter a huge digital divide and that many still have to choose between expensive specialist equipment and inaccessible mainstream gadgets. Researchers from the Helen Hamlyn Centre for Design discovered that technology built for disabled people is expensive, offers low functionality and often requires specialist knowledge to adapt. Mainstream technology, like ipads and Windows Tablets, is cheaper and can do much more, but is rarely customised to meet disabled people s needs. The research also found that the information available to disabled people about enabling technology needs to be improved. They are amongst the groups least likely to use the internet, and are 20 per cent less likely to be online than their peers despite the huge potential of services like online shopping and banking which could transform their lives. With this in mind, the report outlines a series of recommendations for technology companies, commissioners and the providers of key digital services to maximise the enabling potential of digital technology. To coincide with the launch of the report entitled Enabling Technology BT, Scope and the Helen Hamlyn Centre for Design unveiled a series of digital technology prototypes at the London Design Festival in September. These included: the Tailored Touch mouse, which can be made from touch-sensitive pads on any surface, and in any shape or size the Pop-up Reader, which allows a blind or partially-sighted person to read letters and other documents via their smartphone. The Enabling Technology report, plus accompanying videos, can be found at technology-for-disabled-people

5 Recognition for London Apprentices BT Apprentices in the capital have been making their mark recently, with three of them attending a government reception hosted by the Deputy Prime Minister and another eight being recognised at a prestigious national competition. The invitation to Westminster came about following a visit by Liberal Democrat peer Baroness Lindsay Northover to the BT Tower in London. The occasion was organised by apprentice Rachel Gardner, who works in the TV, media and content team in BT Technology, Service & Operations (TSO). Apprenticeships are a real focus for the government and Lindsay had approached BT to ask if she could spend a day with an apprentice in London, Rachel said. After a very successful day, during which we chatted about my experiences at BT, she later invited me and a couple of colleagues to an apprentices reception hosted at the Houses of Parliament by Nick Clegg. Fellow apprentices Emma Tarling and Yasmin Sajid accompanied Rachel to the event, where the threesome found themselves among 50 apprentices from a range of companies. Nick Clegg talked about the importance of apprenticeships to business and emphasised the government s focus on training and funding, Rachel added. We were introduced to him after his presentation, and found him very interested in how apprenticeships are managed at BT and also keen to know more about BT Sport. The group s visit concluded with a tour of the Houses of Parliament, conducted by Baroness Northover. Meanwhile, in another coup for our apprentices, the company has earned a number of accolades at the 2013 National Apprenticeship Awards. In London, Openreach s Ryan Long won Advanced Apprentice of the Year and BT TSO s Stephanie Smith was named Higher Apprentice of the Year. The judges were impressed by both the quality of their written submissions and their significant achievements. A number of commendations also indicated how BT Higher Apprentices are leading the way ahead of many other organisations. BT won the Macro Employee of the year award at the national finals in Birmingham. Emma Tarling and Yasmin Sajid accompanied Rachel to the event BT London region winners celebrate success BT volunteers win support for community groups The company is rewarding organisations and community groups across London with grants of up to 1,000. The donations are being made through our employee recognition scheme, the BT People Awards, which were launched last year. The scheme acknowledges our volunteering heroes, who offer their time and skills to help people in their local community, by awarding grants to organisations with which they are involved. Nine groups in London have received grants to enable them to continue their excellent work in the community, including: Ickenham Youth Football Club, 1st East Wickham Scout Group in Bexleyheath, Enfield Sea Cadets and Dutch Football Academy in West Wickham Chet Patel, BT Regional Director, said: BT has a long history of working with good causes to help improve lives. We see volunteering as a two-way benefit as there are many development opportunities when new skills are brought back into the workplace. Some of these experiences can only be gained by playing such an active role in the local community. For more information, and a complete list of the latest award recipients, go to To find out more about BT s wider portfolio of activities please see our new brochure at