National Islands Plan: annual report 2024

Digital Connectivity

Strategic Objective 6 – Improve digital connectivity

Commitment 6.1 Deliver a step change in the quality of digital connectivity across the islands.

Implementation Route Map 2024

• The Scottish Government will continue to invest in the £384 million Reaching 100% (R100) North contract which covers the majority of Scotland’s inhabited islands.
• The Scottish Government will lead delivery of local and regional procurements in Scotland as part of the UK Government’s Project Gigabit, and jointly managed activity in Scotland that arises from the UK-wide procurement framework. We continue to urge the UK Government to ensure that plans are in place to offer ultrafast connectivity to premises considered by UK Government “Very Hard to Reach” for the purposes of Project Gigabit.

In the course of the past year, the Scottish Government has continued to support delivery of digital infrastructure through the Reaching 100% (R100) programme. This includes the R100 North contract which covers the majority of Scotland’s inhabited islands. As of November 2024, over 19,000 premises now have access to faster broadband connections thanks to the R100 North contract alone.

The Scottish Government is playing a key role in delivering the UK Government’s Project Gigabit programme in Scotland. We have worked with Building Digital UK (BDUK) to prepare a regional procurement covering over 13,500 eligible premises in Orkney and Shetland. This procurement launched on 11 December 2024, with up to £40.7 million of public subsidy made available to an infrastructure supplier to deliver gigabit-capable connectivity to premises across the Orkney and Shetland islands. Premises in other parts of Scotland, including islands, are expected to be included in a contract with Openreach, who will be delivering via Project Gigabit across the UK.

We continue to work closely with the UK Government to explore delivery of further gigabit capable coverage through Project Gigabit in Scotland. We will continue to engage as they develop plans to connect premises which they consider ‘Very Hard to Reach’ for the purposes of Project Gigabit.

Commitment 6.2 Mandate the delivery of gigabit-capable connectivity to selected island locations, through the R100 programme, with many other island communities to benefit once contracts are finalised.

Implementation Route Map 2024

• All of the R100 contract build delivered on islands will be fibre to the premises (FTTP), capable of delivering gigabit speeds – putting island communities in Scotland ahead of the curve, even compared to many urban areas.
• Through the R100 North contract, we will continue to progress delivery with over 12,000 premises located in island communities expected to receive a gigabit-capable connection. During 2024-25 we expect to connect premises in Westray, Eday, Rousay and Shapinsay in the Orkney islands; Unst and Whalsay in the Shetland islands; and the isles of Mull and Iona through the R100 North contract.

By November 2024, almost 3,500 faster broadband connections had been delivered to island premises as a result of the R100 contracts, with a further 350 connections delivered as a result of the R100 Scottish Broadband Voucher Scheme.

Connections are now available on Westray, Rousay and Shapinsay in Orkney, Unst and Whalsay in Shetland, and Mull and Iona in Argyll & Bute. Further build on Mull and Eday is planned for 2025.

Commitment 6.3 Call on the UK Government to prioritise early investment in Scotland’s islands as part of their plans for full fibre roll-out by 2025.

Implementation Route Map 2024

• We will continue to engage with UK Ministers to ensure Scotland receives its fair share of Project Gigabit funding, urging the UK Government to commit a level of funding that allows early investment in Scotland’s islands.

In December 2024, the Scottish Government launched a £40.7 million regional Project Gigabit procurement aimed at delivering gigabit capable connectivity in Orkney and Shetland where more than 13,500 premises are eligible to be connected. It is anticipated that the contract will be awarded in the second half of 2025.

Commitment 6.4 Call on Ofcom to address the issues faced by island communities when designing telecoms regulation and policy. We also committed to convene a meeting with Ofcom and island representatives to explore how regulatory levers (such as spectrum auctions) could improve both mobile and broadband coverage on the islands and ensure that the needs of islands are represented to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) in UK national policy development.

Implementation Route Map 2024

• We will continue to work with island partners including local authorities, communities and business to gather evidence of demonstrate needs of islands in regards to mobile and broadband coverage.
• The Scottish Government continues to work closely with representatives of the Office of Communications (OFCOM) to ensure that Scotland’s interests are represented and any issues raised with focus in the year ahead on their forthcoming Telecoms Access Review. This also includes co-ordinating regular liaison between OFCOM and Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) representatives with our recognised local authority single points of contact for digital connectivity, including representatives of island communities.

There is strong ongoing engagement between the Scottish Government Digital Connectivity Division, Ofcom and our local authority single points of contact for digital connectivity, including representatives of island local authorities. Ofcom plan to begin consultation on their forthcoming Telecoms Access Review early in 2025 which will provide a further opportunity for island communities to input regarding future telecoms regulation and policy and ensure that the needs of islands are represented.

Commitment 6.5 Through the Scotland 5G Centre, build on the 5G RuralFirst trials currently taking place on Orkney, and working with partners including Ofcom, we committed to develop rural 5G use cases to address the rural digital divide using 5G technology.

Implementation Route Map 2024

• Working with the Scotland 5G Centre, and in partnership with the 5G New Thinking project, we continue to monitor the progress of the pan-island testbed 5G network trials (including fixed wireless access and spectrum sharing) and key 5G and Internet of Things (IoT) use case applications (including energy and food & drink), and explore how the outputs and lessons learned can be mainstreamed and help inform policy in addressing the rural digital divide.
• Private 5G networks have been built on Westray and Papa Westray, and on Flotta and Hoy, working with local on-island partners Cloudnet IT Services and Orkney Islands Council. A total of seven 5G rural private network base-stations have been installed and providing connectivity to 68 trialists across these island communities. A 5G network core was set up and a network monitoring system developed for the network operations. While physical deployment activity concluded in March 2022, the project team has maintained and operated the network, and also carried out additional engineering to allow scope for further innovative projects.

Through previous investment from the Scotland 5G Centre’s Wave 1 rural project until March 2023, and in partnership with the 5G New Thinking project from 2019-22, equipment was procured to build private 5G networks on Westray, Papa Westray, Flotta and Hoy working with on-island partners Cloudnet IT Services and Orkney Islands Council. Seven 5G rural private network base stations were installed and provided connectivity to local trialists across communities. Since the conclusion of physical deployment activity in March 2022, the project team on Orkney has continued to maintain and operate components of the 5G networks. They have carried out additional engineering to enable potential further innovative projects to progress, with applications for funding submitted to DSIT, UK Space Agency and InnovateUK.

Commitment 6.6 Work with local resilience partnerships and telecoms providers to encourage them to focus on resilience of data links to and from the islands.

Implementation Route Map 2024

• The Scottish Government will continue to engage with relevant resilience partnerships to identify any challenges to resilience of data links to and from the islands.

The Scottish Government continues to progress terrestrial build following the installation of 16 fibre-optic subsea cables through the Reaching 100% (R100) programme. Upon completion, it is expected that around 12,000 island premises will have been given access to faster broadband connections due to the over £600 million R100 contracts. In 2025-26, Ofcom’s Plan of Work will have a focus on improving the resilience of networks to meet the demands of citizens.

Our investment in the award winning £28.75 million Scottish 4G Infill (S4S4GI) programme has provided future-proofed digital infrastructure, delivering 4G mobile infrastructure to 55 mobile “notspots”, improving rural and island 4G mobile coverage.

Commitment 6.7 Develop a digital skills programme designed by island communities to meet their needs.

Implementation Route Map 2024

• We will continue to engage with island communities to understand digital skills needs.
• We will learn from existing programmes being delivered in island communities and support their implementation across the islands.
• We will engage with education providers, agencies, and local authorities to understand more of what skills programmes are being implemented across the islands.

Connecting Scotland is a Scottish Government programme, delivered in partnership with the Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations (SCVO). Since its inception in May 2020, the programme has issued over 61,000 internet-enabled devices, connectivity and digital skills support to digitally excluded throughout Scotland.

Post-pandemic, the programme was paused whilst a Full Business Case was developed and delivery was resumed in August 2023, with new digital inclusion projects. The first two projects focused on delivering kit and connectivity to device library and social housing organisations via grant awards. Applications for the projects closed on 27 November 2023, with £204,000 in grant funding awarded to 34 projects working to further digital inclusion across Scotland.

A place-based project fund launched in spring 2024, closing for applications on 26 April, with an additional £184,000 in grant funding awarded to five successful projects. These projects have allowed organisations to expand their capacity through the provision of additional kit and connectivity, supporting them in reaching out to more digitally excluded people across Scotland.

Shetland Library were one of the successful applicants to the Connecting Scotland Lending Library Fund, securing funding of £4,824 which has supported people to use PCs in the library and loan tablets, increasing their service’s outreach and flexibility. This is particularly important in an island community. The Fund will enable the service to expand by adding laptops, Chromebooks and MiFi devices to the catalogue.

Commitment 6.8 Extend the availability of coding clubs and community-based digital inclusion programmes across the islands.

Implementation Route Map 2024

• We will learn from existing programmes being delivered in the island communities and support their implementation across the islands.

We will continue to learn from existing programmes being delivered across island communities.

Over the course of the 2022-23 financial year, we supported Silicon Croft to undertake educator engagement and collaboration across Shetland with a view to sharing resources, raising awareness and developing digital skills.

This project aimed to create a system that links existing resources together to create a network of learning that allows Silicon Croft members to own their digital skills development. The approach focuses on educator engagement and collaboration, whilst sharing a wide range of resources to raise awareness and develop digital skills. The aim is to integrate digital skills across the curriculum and support the development of rural digital economies.

In 2024-25, HIE delivered internal Artificial Intelligence masterclasses with the Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations.