Digital Television -

RBH Digital TV works Schedule

RBH’s Digital TV works to enable digital reception before the 4th November 2009 switchover

Tenants and Lease holders that will have their homes upgraded

The Switchover starts on 4th November and will be complete by 2nd December 2009

1. These properties are the sheltered housing flats and the three storey and above flats and maisonettes that have existing communal television reception systems. Each scheme where required will be completely upgraded with new cabling to provide an IRS+ (Integrated Reception System +) system. Sheltered tenants will get an additional parallel bedroom socket fitted as standard. This will be given as an option to non sheltered tenants at a cost of £40 which can be taken up at the time the works are carried out.

The tenants and residents have been sent letters and information about the Digital Switchover. This included a questionnaire that they were asked to fill in and return by either prepaid envelope or return at the nearest surgery.

Several surgeries took place in early 2007 with the sheltered housing tenants from each scheme. The second phase of surgeries took place in late 2007 with the tenants and residents of the flats and maisonettes and was held centrally in Heywood, Middleton and Rochdale.

A selection process was carried out in April 08 and ABCA Systems (NW) Ltd was chosen to deliver the upgrades from the Northern Housing Consortium (NHC) framework contract.

ABCA hold an introductory meeting with each of the sheltered schemes before work commences with their Tenant Liaison Officer.

The upgrades started in August 2008 and should be complete three months in advance of the switchover in November 2009. Further details and further information has been provided in the quarterly editions of the Tenants Talkback magazine since Sept 2007 and will also continue upto and beyond the upgrade works.

Any tenants that have existing satellite dishes will not require them once the new systems are commissioned and they will be removed and given back to the tenant if they wish.

Presentations have been carried out for frontline staff and sheltered Wardens so that they can answer general questions that may be asked by tenants and residents.

RBH have regular contact with Digital UK and receive monthly switchover news about information and the latest developments.

2. RBH are now to include any two-storey and below communal schemes that comprise of bungalows, houses and flats and maisonettes, which share communal television aerials. ABCA will carry out full surveys to identify the current condition and aerial configurations of these communal systems. When the full range of works are identified a programme will be drawn up.

Any communal systems that are inadequate will be replaced with new single aerials as the first option. Where this is technically not possible then a new communal aerial will be installed to the MATV (Master Television Antennae) specification. Some tenants and residents may have an additional socket fitted at the time of installation and would need to make arrangements to pay the installer direct.

The servicing contract that covers many of these properties runs until August 2009.

The tenants and residents will be written to with the details about any upgrade works that may be required.

Tenants that have one existing aerial per property that will not be upgraded

Homes with single aerials will not be upgraded. These are mainly houses and bungalows. NHC have identified that the installers who have been appointed to the framework who can be contacted to check whether the existing aerials will be adequate to receive digital TV reception or whether they will need to have new aerials. Digital UK also has a list of Registered Digital Installers (RDI’s) and or Confederation of Aerial Industries (CAI’s) that can be asked to check the status of existing aerials for reception. RBH can assist in putting tenants in contact with ABCA or others.

ABCA have offered to do a test for (£10.50 taken off the cost of a new aerial) and install a new aerial if required to any homes that require one for a cost of £70. If the signal strength of the aerial is adequate then no work is required or if the reception is poor then a new aerial may be required.

We are giving advice to tenants that they should only approach RDI’s and or CAI’s and to be careful of aerial installers who may call at the door saying that they need a new aerial or equipment.

Tenants and Leaseholders in properties that were previously upgraded by the local installer

Some RBH properties were upgraded several years ago. Letters were sent to tenants and residents to explain that they are already upgraded and will be able to receive digital reception in 2009 with some minor installation work to the main equipment only. Again ABCA are checking these installations to identify if any work is required or not.

The existing maintenance and servicing contract will continue until 2010 by our local installer Metro Digital (MDTV).

These properties that are mainly three-storey and above were mostly upgraded to MATV with the exception of the College Bank blocks in the town centre and one other building that received IRS systems.

The tenants and residents will be informed if any works are needed once the surveys of the installations have been carried out.

Other issues

We have made tenants and residents aware of the Help Scheme available in 2009 and the switchover progress through ‘’Tenants talkback’’ magazine.

RBH gives out information for the BME Focus Group and Disability Working Group meetings on a regular basis.

A full programme of works is available on the RBH website.

Notes

1. MATV allows reception of analogue and digital TV and free and subscription services also DAB and FM radio.
2. IRS allows the same as MATV but with the addition of satellite services.
3. IRS+ allows the same as IRS but with the addition of satellite plus services and different language satellite channels.

Contacts for enquiries about the upgrade works

RBH Development Officer        Tahir Sharif       01706 516650

ABCA Tenant Liaison Officer   Karen Prince     01204 399422

Useful contacts for further information

Digital UK                                www.digitaluk.co.uk or 08456 50 50 50

Switchover Help Scheme         www.helpscheme.co.uk or 0800 40 85 900 (free calls)

ITV Digital                               www.itvdigital/switchover

BBC Digital                              www.bbc.co.uk/digital

Registered Digital Installer –

Licensing Body                        info@rdi-lb.tv or 0870 129 8015          

ABCA Systems (NW) Ltd         www.abcasystems.co.uk or 01204 399422

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