Scottish Wide Area Network

Last updated

The Scottish Wide Area Network (SWAN) is the secure network for Scotland's public services. More than 6,000 sites are connected by the network.

Contents

After the tendering process concluded in March 2013, one of the parties launched a legal challenge, which was dropped in February 2014.

History

NHS Scotland previously used the N3 national communications network supplied by British Telecom (BT). [1]

The procurement process for a new network began in October 2012. On 21 March 2013, three bidders were announced as having been shortlisted: BT, a partnership of Cable & Wireless Worldwide with Virgin Media Business, and a partnership of Capita with Updata Infrastructure. [2] After a preferred bidder was selected, BT served NHS National Services Scotland (NSS) with a summons, seeking a re-run of the tendering process. [3]

In January 2014 the case was heard at the Court of Session in Edinburgh. [1] The court found in favour of NSS, and the following month BT decided not to appeal the decision. [4] NSS announced the award of the contract to Capita-Updata, who had been their preferred bidder. [5] [4] In November 2014 BT and NSS released a statement to indicate the matter was settled. [6]

The first phase of the network was to involve the NHS and six local authorities. [7] By October 2015 there were 3,200 sites connected to the network. [8] By February 2016, the rollout was 11 months behind schedule. [9] In March 2016, the contract was worth an estimated value of up to £325 million over a nine-year period. [10] In 2017, CityFibre were also involved in the connecting sites. [11] In 2020 Capita secured several contract renewals. [12]

SWAN connects more than 6,000 sites across Scotland, including every hospital and ambulance station, also GP surgeries, community pharmacies, local councils premises and schools. [13]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">BT Group</span> British multinational telecommunications holding company

BT Group plc is a British multinational telecommunications holding company headquartered in London, England. It has operations in around 180 countries and is the largest provider of fixed-line, broadband and mobile services in the UK, and also provides subscription television and IT services.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">First ScotRail</span> Train operating company in the United Kingdom

First ScotRail was a train operating company in Scotland owned by FirstGroup. It operated the ScotRail franchise between October 2004 and March 2015.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael Matheson (politician)</span> Scottish politician (born 1970)

Michael Stephen Matheson is a Scottish politician who has been a Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) since 1999, first representing the Central Scotland region and, since 2007, the Falkirk West constituency. Matheson previously served in the Scottish government as Cabinet Secretary for NHS Recovery, Health and Social Care from 2023 to 2024, Cabinet Secretary for Net Zero, Energy and Transport from 2018 to 2023, and Cabinet Secretary for Justice from 2014 to 2018.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Scottish Parliament Building</span> Home of the Scottish Parliament at Holyrood, Edinburgh

The Scottish Parliament Building is the home of the Scottish Parliament at Holyrood, within the UNESCO World Heritage Site in central Edinburgh. Construction of the building commenced in June 1999 and the Members of the Scottish Parliament (MSPs) held their first debate in the new building on 7 September 2004. The formal opening by Queen Elizabeth II took place on 9 October 2004. Enric Miralles, the Catalan architect who designed the building, died before its completion.

Capita plc is an international business process outsourcing and professional services company headquartered in London.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">NHS National Services Scotland</span>

NHS National Services Scotland (NSS) is a Non Departmental Public Body which provides advice and services to the rest of NHS Scotland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Glasgow Airport Rail Link</span> Proposed rail line

The Glasgow Airport Rail Link (GARL) is a proposed link between Glasgow City Centre and Glasgow Airport. The original plans for an airport rail link were proposed during the 2000s to directly link Glasgow Central station with Glasgow Airport in Scotland. The link was intended for completion by 2013 and would have had a service of four trains per hour via Paisley Gilmour Street railway station.

Openreach Limited are a company wholly owned by BT Group plc, that maintain telephone cables, ducts, cabinets and exchanges that connect nearly all homes and businesses in the United Kingdom to various national broadband and telephone networks. They were established in 2006 following an agreement between BT and the UK's telecoms regulator, Ofcom, to implement certain undertakings, pursuant to the Enterprise Act 2002, to ensure that rival telecom operators have equality of access to BT's local network.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Scottish National Blood Transfusion Service</span> Government agency in Edinburgh, Scotland

The Scottish National Blood Transfusion Service (SNBTS) is the national blood, blood product and tissue provider. It makes up a Strategic Business Unit of NHS National Services Scotland (NSS).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Internet in the United Kingdom</span> Overview of the Internet in the United Kingdom

The United Kingdom has been involved with the Internet throughout its origins and development. The telecommunications infrastructure in the United Kingdom provides Internet access to homes and businesses mainly through fibre, cable, mobile and fixed wireless networks, with the UK's 140-year-old copper network, maintained by Openreach, set to be withdrawn by December 2025.

EE is a British mobile network operator, internet service provider and a brand of BT Consumer, a division of BT Group. It was established in 2010 and is the second-largest mobile network operator in the United Kingdom, with 21.2 million customers as of September 2022.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Queensferry Crossing</span> Road bridge across the Firth of Forth, Scotland

The Queensferry Crossing is a road bridge in Scotland. It was built alongside the existing Forth Road Bridge and the Forth Bridge. It carries the M90 motorway across the Firth of Forth between Edinburgh, at South Queensferry, and Fife, at North Queensferry.

BT Superfast Fibre is a broadband service in the United Kingdom provided by BT Consumer, the consumer sales arm of the BT Group. The underlying network is fibre-to-the-cabinet (FTTC), which uses optical fibre for all except the final few hundred metres (yards) to the consumer, and delivers claimed download speeds of "up to 76 Mbit/s" and upload speeds of "up to 19 Mbit/s" depending on package selected. The fibre terminates in a new roadside cabinet containing a DSLAM, from where the final connection to the customer uses VDSL2 technology.

The Scottish Digital Network (SDN) is a planned new public service broadcaster and online services provider in Scotland. It was the principal proposal of the Scottish Broadcasting Commission. The Scottish Broadcasting Commission published its final report in September 2008, with this as its primary recommendation. On 13 September 2010 the Minister for Culture and External Affairs, Fiona Hyslop, requested Blair Jenkins, who had been the chair of the Scottish Broadcasting Commission to actively explore proposed options and business models for the establishment of a Scottish digital network to compete in public service broadcasting with the BBC Network in Scotland. On 21 March 2013, three bidders were announced as the finalists for the Scottish Wide Area Network (SWAN). They were British Telecom, a partnership of Cable & Wireless Worldwide with Virgin Media Business and Capita with Updata Infrastructure.

Abellio is a Dutch public transport company that operates bus and rail services in Germany, and formerly also in Czech Republic, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom. It is wholly owned by the Dutch national railway company, Nederlandse Spoorwegen (NS).

Updata Infrastructure UK Ltd was a privately held UK company providing Internet and broadband connectivity services, primarily to public sector markets. Updata’s headquarters were in Premier House, Reigate, Surrey and the company also had offices in Wales and Scotland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jeane Freeman</span> Scottish National Party politician

Jeane Tennent Freeman is a Scottish retired businesswoman and politician who served as Cabinet Secretary for Health and Sport from 2018 to 2021. A member of the Scottish National Party (SNP), she was the Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for the Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley constituency from 2016 to 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Catherine Calderwood</span> Scottish doctor

Catherine Jane CalderwoodFRCOG FRCPE is Northern-Irish born Scottish consultant obstetrician and gynaecologist, who has served as the National Clinical Director for Sustainable Delivery at the Golden Jubilee University National Hospital since 2021. She previously served as the Chief Medical Officer for Scotland from 2015 to 2020, having advised the Scottish Government's initial response to the COVID-19 pandemic in Scotland.

The Health and Social Care Network (HSCN) is a standards-based network that replaced the N3 network in the National Health Service (NHS) in England. It went live in April 2017. Transition to the new network was completed by November 2020.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">CityFibre</span> British network provider

CityFibre is an independent British telecommunications network provider, providing gigabit-capable FTTP broadband across the UK. They are the third-largest network provider in the UK, after Openreach and Virgin Media. It is considered one of the UK's "altnets", in reference to being an alternative to Openreach.

References

  1. 1 2 Buckland, Lyndsay (15 January 2014). "Battle over new NHS IT system could cost millions". The Scotsman . Retrieved 22 January 2022.
  2. ↑ "Three shortlisted for Scottish digital network tender". BBC News. 21 March 2013.
  3. ↑ Scott, Jennifer (19 December 2013). "BT launches proceedings against Scotland's NHS over SWAN project". Computer Weekly . Retrieved 1 May 2016.
  4. 1 2 Buckland, Lyndsay (11 February 2014). "BT seek damages over failed NHS IT network bid". The Scotsman. Retrieved 22 January 2022.
  5. ↑ Scott, Jennifer (17 February 2014). "NHS Scotland awards SWAN contract to Capita". Computer Weekly. Retrieved 1 May 2016.
  6. ↑ Nguyen, Anh (25 November 2014). "NHS Scotland settles with BT over SWAN procurement". Computer World UK. Retrieved 1 May 2016.
  7. ↑ Puttick, Helen (15 January 2014). "BT sues health service over £110m computer contract". The Herald . Glasgow. Retrieved 1 May 2016.
  8. ↑ Robertson, Alan (28 October 2015). "Inverclyde Council joins Scottish Wide Area Network". Holyrood . Archived from the original on 10 September 2016.
  9. ↑ Robertson, Alan (16 February 2016). "Is the Scottish Wide Area Network living up to expectation?". Holyrood. Archived from the original on 10 September 2016.
  10. ↑ Gourley, Perry (18 March 2014). "Capita looks to add 1,500 jobs on new contract wins". The Scotsman. Retrieved 22 January 2022.
  11. ↑ O'Halloran, Joe (17 January 2022). "CityFibre extends full-fibre in Aberdeen". Computer Weekly . Retrieved 15 February 2022.
  12. ↑ Clark, Lindsay (18 August 2021). "SWAN-song: Scotland re-tenders WAN framework for up to £350m". The Register . Retrieved 15 February 2022.
  13. ↑ O'Sullivan, Kevin (19 October 2022). "Internet of things can only get better". futurescot.com. FutureScot. Retrieved 15 February 2022.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.