The Broadband Connection Point Initiative will unlock the potential in our Rural communities.
Whether that is connected to working, the creative arts, eHealth, educational support, or business support, the BCPs will be supported to provide the digital services that their communities need.
“These premises are not merely a stop-gap measure ahead of the arrival of the National Broadband Plan, it is our hope that they will instead become long-term community assets, fixtures of their communities, providing next-generation services to Ireland’s rural heartlands.”
High-quality digital connectivity offers an unprecedented opportunity to transform rural Ireland. It will support the sustainability of rural communities by enabling more people to continue to live and work in rural locations and encouraging others to relocate to rural areas.
The COVID-19 pandemic has further highlighted the importance of digital connectivity in supporting many aspects of our daily lives.
Throughout the crisis, digital connectivity helped many people to avoid becoming socially isolated;
it enabled students to continue their education through on-line learning;
and it demonstrated its potential to support economic activity through remote working and the delivery of services on-line.
Improved connectivity and digital innovation will help communities to have greater outreach.
It will support older people to live independently in their communities, but with access to more support and services through connected technologies.
It will mean a better quality of life for rural dwellers, enabling people to access online information and resources including the provision of online services such as education and personalised health care. In the longer term, it is envisaged that many of the BCPs will act as a central point for the provision of digital services in the community.
The (NBP) BCP delivery Programme is now completed in County Tipperary – and the following Broadband Connection Points have been connected and are providing high-speed broadband services to members of the public –
- ROSSMORE COMMUNITY HALL, ROSSMORE, CASHEL, E25D429
- DROM COMMUNITY HALL, DROM, BORRISOLEIGH, THURLES, E41X285
- CURREENEY COMMUNITY HALL, CURREENEY, KILCOMMON, THURLES, E41XC62
- AGLISH COMMUNITY HALL, AGLISH, ROSCREA, E53E132
- KILLURNEY COMMUNITY CENTRE, KILLURNEY, BALLYPATRICK, CLONMEL, E91H7W4
- MOYGLASS COMMUNITY HALL, MOYGLASS, FETHARD, E91WK25
- KILLOSCULLY COMMUNITY CENTRE, KILLOSCULLY, NEWPORT, V94FK20
- KILLEA COMMUNITY CENTRE, KILLEA, TEMPLEMORE, E41T6Y0THE
- PAVILLION, BALLINDERRY SPORTSFIELD, BALLINDERRY, NENAGH, E45 F627
- BALLINAHINCH COMMUNITY CENTRE, ROSSFINCH, BALLINAHINCH, BIRDHILL, V94 CVC0
- BOHER PARISH HALL, BOHER, BALLINA, V94 EY06
- FANURE COMMUNITY HALL, FANURE, ROSCREA, E53 AE02
- KILCOLEMAN COMMUNITY AND RECREATIONAL CENTRE, BURGESS GAA CLUB, PAIRC NA NGAEL, KILCOLEMAN, NEWTOWN, NENAGH, E45 YH76
- THE APPLE CAMPING & CARAVAN PARK, MOORSTOWN, CAHIR, E21 YX33
- DONASKEAGH COMMUNITY CENTRE, DONASKEAGH, E34 AK24 (HSB connection to this building is “Gigabit Fibre ”)
- TERRYGLASS COMMUNITY HALL, TERRYGLASS, NENAGH, E45 FC42
- BALLYLOOBY CASTLEGRACE GAA CLUB, BALLYLOOBY CASTLEGRACE GAA CLUBHOUSE, KILROE, BALLYLOOBY, E21 TA47
- LATTERAGH COMMUNITY CENTRE, SALLYPARK, LATTERAGH, NENAGH, E45 EF68
- GURTAGARRY COMMUNITY HALL, GORTAGARRY, TOOMEVARA, NENAGH, E45 FA43
- LISMACKIN COMMUNITY HALL, LISMACKIN, ROSCREA, E53 Y589
- NORTH TIPPERARY FOOD WORKS, MAIN STREET, REARCROSS, NEWPORT, V94YW08
The BCP Initiative is a collaborative effort involving the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications, the Department of Rural and Community Development, National Broadband Ireland, the Local Authorities and Managers of the BCP sites.
The receipt of DRCD connected hubs Funding has supported our community involvement with remote villages and the aim to develop our Broadband Connection Points into active “Remote Digital Hubs – Connected Communities”.
The Tipperary BCP Network has to-date completed a number of pilot Digital Skills and digital literacy courses.
Working with the DRCD, a number of public and private sector partners, these pilot programmes seek to upskill from no knowledge to working proficiency and to support the exploration of STEAM subjects and coding by school children and families.
“Digital literacy Courses will offer new skills to learn, work and navigate everyday life in our digital world. The skills involve the ability to use devices, software, and apps safely and with confidence”
Acquiring digital skills is as important as physical access to broadband infrastructure to enable individuals and communities to maximise the benefits of high-speed broadband connectivity.
The internet and digital technologies are transforming the way people live and work, but figures from the Central Statistics Office show that the use of these technologies decreases in older age categories.
A number of Digital Skills Training Programmes were rolled out in the Broadband Connection Points in County Tipperary in 2022 in association with –
- Our Kids Code and Trinity College, Dublin
- NALA
- Hi Digital and Vodafone and Active Retirement Ireland
- Microsoft Ireland™ Dream Space Den
- KINIA and Youth Work Ireland
- Our Rural Future: Digital Initiative Programme 2021 –Smart Skills for Farming Communities (Tipperary) in association with -
ICMSA - Making Sense of Milk Price
IFA - Agri Technology for Improved Resource Efficiency
Teagasc - Fertiliser Spreader Setup, Calibration tools, and GPS Control
Teagasc - Precision Technology Use on Farms
Tipperary County Council is continuing its Digital Skills Journey and partnering with Microsoft Ireland™ and OurKidsCode and Offering these Programmes to our Students and their Families throughout the Tipperary BCP Network.
- Tipperary’s BCP Digital Network ran “OurKidsCode” pilot programmes in Boher BCP, Drom BCP and Rossmore BCP last year and all have turned out to be so successful down to in no small part to the enthusiasm of their committee members, local community and their associated primary schools in their catchment area.
“OurKidsCode” is a programme run outside of school times and is open to families to participate in a four-week facilitated workshop programme and aims to improve participants confidence in computing and technology with parents learning alongside their children by participating in creative computing workshops for families of all shapes and sizes.
Volunteer Champion Facilitator Training Programme
The theme of “OurKidsCode” for 2023 is sustainability i.e. to ensure that OurKidsCode remains in the community as an ongoing offering to new families. To be able to do this we needed to have the skills and capacity in each community to be able to deliver the programme independently as and when needed by the community.
To achieve this, we worked with Trinity College to deliver a Volunteer Champion Training Programme in February, 2023 where ten (10) volunteers received training on how to deliver/facilitate a full four week workshop. At the end of this training all participants now have the skills, knowledge and ability to successfully facilitate a programme in their community BCP before the end of 2023.
- The Dream Space Showcase - Microsoft Ireland™ do your :bit Challenge
January 2023 saw the launch of Microsoft Ireland™ do your :bit challenge in collaboration with Microsoft Dream Space, OurKidsCode and our Tipperary BCP Network supported by the Department of Rural and Community Development.
We invited our rural schools located near our BCP network the opportunity to participate in this challenge, culminating in them pitching their digital innovation projects to judges at Microsoft Ireland™ Dream Space One Microsoft Place, Dublin in June 2023.
This follows on from almost 400 primary school students involvement in Digital Skills workshops which took place in 2022 in collaboration with OurKidsCode and Microsoft Dream Space. We have already seen Boher N.S., Rossmore N.S., Drom N.S., Newport Boys N.S., Ballinahinch N.S., Barnane N.S., Lackamore N.S., and Newport Convent N.S. take part and are now eager to learn and experience more.
- KINIA – Creative Digital Media
Secondary school teachers took part in a one day training programme on Video making and are now skilled to deliver this in their respective schools.
For more Information re these Programmes – please email broadband@tipperarycoco.ie