Just before Christmas we had an email pop into our Digital Birmingham inbox. It was from somebody who is setting up their own business in Birmingham. They asked us
“I was wondering if Birmingham City Council has a comprehensive list of the city centre postcodes so I could easily upload this to the admin area of my website, so when the customer places an order this will be accepted/rejected depending on the postcode.”
Or, O Hai! Kultcha, as one commenter referred to it.
Anyway, on Thursday 17th November I attended Hello Culture at Zellig in the Custard Factory. It was billed as a day “to explore how the cultural sector can exploit digital technology, innovation, knowledge and skills” and I had a little speaking slot on a panel in the morning about social media and user generated content. More – Hello Culture
Passionate Media have teamed up with training providers SSC Learning and are working with them to pioneer a new Social Media Marketing Apprenticeship Scheme across Staffordshire and the Midlands.
Presentations will be held tomorrow about the scheme, where companies can take on a social media marketing apprentices in their business. If you’re a businesses that wants to invest in social media or are a young person who wants to pursue a career in marketing and communications, pop along to The Birmingham Small Business Centre at either 8.30am, 10.30am or 12.30pm.
Yesterday, Annette attended the Digital Inclusion Social Housing Forum which was held in Microsoft’s offices in London and hosted Digital Unite.The aim of the workshop was to work with social housing providers to identify how they could get their tenants online.
Annette gave a presentation to the group around things that Birmingham is already doing; the Windor Tower project, 4G network proposal and explained the benefits of Looking Local ie Birmingham’s Interactive Digital TV channel.
The forum talked about the barriers for people on low income and how some of these can be addressed by looking at different funding models ie PAYG/sponsored models. There was an appetite for social housing providers to get together to procure services as a whole rather than individually to ensure that they get better value for their clients; which included procuring affordable digital equipment for the tenant and broadband access.
It was suggested that the next meeting be held in Birmingham and hosted by Digital Birmingham, dates will be posted shortly.
Following on from Simon’s blog about the Kindle Camp co-hosted by Digital Birmingham, Birmingham City Council’s web team and The New Optimists on 1st June 2011, Birmingham City Council has announced the pilot of a new digital publishing support service for local authors.
This pilot will now offer support to authors who want to publish their books digitally, either by converting their books to ebooks for them, or by teaching them the skills to publish ebooks themselves. The first course in the pilot – ‘ebook in a day: Kindle publishing for beginners’ – will teach all the skills needed to convert a book into an e-book and publish it on Amazon.
‘ebook in a day: Kindle publishing for beginners’, will be held at Birmingham Central Library from 9:30am to 4pm on Saturday 24 September and cost £55.
For more information and how to book your place, please click here.
History provides many examples of great ‘Firsts’. Chuck Yeager – the first person to break the sound barrier by flying faster than the speed of sound; Neil Armstrong – the first man to walk on the moon; Sir Roger Bannister – the first man to break the 4-minute mile; Alexander Bell – first in the race to invent the telephone.
Now I’m not suggesting that taking the first tentative steps towards making Birmingham the first City in the UK to have a Citywide 4G wireless network is even close to flying to the moon, but having being heavily involved with developing the 4G proposal for Birmingham, it does fill me with immense excitement on the glimpse into the future that it holds.
The demand by consumers for data ‘on the go’ is now at an all time high and this demand will only continue to travel in one direction……UP. With more and more businesses and people using smart phones and tablet devices, networks are struggling to meet the demand and 4G technology holds the potential to solve that problem. It also offers potential to enable services to be delivered in new and innovative ways; just imagine …virtual visits from your doctor, real time CCTV on public transport, live streaming of high definition video whilst commuting to work. More – Birmingham unveils it’s 4G plans!
A MESSAGE FROM COUNCILLOR TIMOTHY HUXTABLE,
CABINET MEMBER (TRANSPORT, ENVIRONMENT AND REGENERATION)
As the Cabinet Member for Transport, Environment and Regeneration, I see firsthand every day how the city council and its partners are working together to move major initiatives forward and support Birmingham’s future growth and prosperity. There are a number of projects planned across the city and below is an outline of just some of those projects that will add to the economic, cultural and creative diversity that makes our city so special.
Within the city centre the development of a new public square in Church Street, with high quality material (paving, benches, planting), will create an excellent piece of public realm that links the business district with the Jewellery Quarter. The square is being developed by the city council in partnership with Colmore Business District, and will enable people to pause and enjoy the area, as well as taking in events and cultural activities. This project is part of the Big City Plan Initiative Programme, and the full business case has been presented to the Procurement Committee and it is envisaged that work will start on-site by the end of the year.
The Albion Square project seeks to bring forward environmental enhancements at the junction of Carver Street, Legge Lane and Albion Street in the core of the Jewellery Quarter Conservation Area. The project is to be funded from a S106 agreement which was secured specifically for this purpose and has a total cost of £271,474. Designs have been prepared in line with the feedback gathered from previous consultation with residents, ward members and the business community. The improvements will create an attractive public space using traditional Jewellery Quarter materials. Safety and accessibility will be improved for pedestrians by extending the footway and creating prominent crossing points. The Albion Square full business case, currently on route to Cabinet Committee Procurement for approval, plans the implementation of the improvements starting July 2011. This would result in the scheme being completed during October 2011.
Across the city there are a number of further developments that will help shape our neighbourhoods and boost their economies.
Kings Heath
, for example, will soon be home to a new public square designed and implemented by a unique partnership between a local church, local businesses and the city council. This scheme, which is jointly funded by grants from the National Lottery Community Spaces scheme and the city council, will provide a sustainable space for calm reflection in this busy local centre.
The scheme incorporates part of the former churchyard and the area at the corner of the High Street and Vicarage Road in order to unify these previously disparate areas. It is currently under construction and due to be completed in October, when the square will provide a new home for the thriving farmers’ market and other community events.
In Tyseley we have designated the area an ‘Environmental Enterprise District’, with the vision of making it the principal location in Birmingham for C02 reduction as part of a low carbon, low waste economy. This will be achieved by encouraging recycling, energy production and renewables, including manufacturing and supply chain development. We are promoting a business-led approach to achieving sustainable development in Tyseley and will seek to capitalise on emerging markets in environmental and low carbon technologies which will compensate for the decline of traditional industries.
European Regional Development Fund investment of £1m forms part of an overall funding package of £4.9 million which will assist businesses to improve their property and utilise other used space and empty sites is a first step in the Tyseley Environmental Enterprise District through the creation of the Tyseley Property Assistance Programme (TPAP).
TPAP seeks to stimulate long-term growth, enabling physical improvements, employment growth and retention. It will enhance economic competitiveness through new build, the extension of commercial premises, internal works, demolitions, land clearance and reclamation – all of which will lead to new commercial spaces.
Within Longbridge there are a number of initiatives that are assisting in the area’s development, as set out in the Longbridge Area Action Plan. Proposals for the former MG Rover plant site include plans for 10,000 jobs, 2,000 new homes built to high environmental standards, a new local centre to provide a wide range of retail, leisure, commercial and community facilities and a series of public transport and highway improvements.
Subject to the city council finalising agreements with the developer and Big Lottery Fund, work on the Longbridge Youth Centre (myplace) will shortly begin on site, with completion in summer 2012. The youth centre will support a range of sporting activities, creative and performing arts, active citizenship and volunteering, youth business, social enterprise, guidance counselling (such as health services), education, training and career advice.
The new £66 million, 250,000 sq ft Bournville College represents first phase of the new Longbridge Town Centre, aims to open September 2011. The educational facility will have capacity for over 15,000 students and will feature modern training facilities for hairdressing, beauty, floristry, catering, construction and sport as well as a state-of-the-art conference centre. The £7 million programme of road works on A38/Bristol Road South is progressing and will be completed to coincide with opening of the College.
Housing within the area will be enhanced through the Lickey Road housing scheme, which will deliver 115 new homes. There will be 34 affordable housing units. The scheme is being supported by a £3,661,000 funding agreement between HCA and developer St. Modwen.
Proposals to develop the £70 million Longbridge Town Centre mixed use scheme include 7,900 sq metre supermarket, 24 new retail shops and restaurants, 40 apartments, hotel and town centre park. Aspiration is to start on site summer 2011. The development of the new town centre will provide a much needed economic boost and will help meet the needs and aspirations of the local community as identified in the Longbridge Area Action Plan. St. Modwen hopes to start on site in summer 2011, subject to further successful negotiations with Birmingham City Council.
Aston East Regional Investment Site
(RIS): for the next two decades the RIS will represent one of the single largest business investment opportunities in the West Midlands and a focus for transformational change. The site is 18.3ha in area and includes proposals for a mix of business, commercial and open space areas. It will be developed in four phases over an 18 year period and, when complete, will generate over 3,000 new job opportunities. The RIS is being promoted through the Aston, Newtown and Lozells Area Action Plan, and land for the bulk of the Phase 1 development (the Holte and Priory site) has already been assembled.
A development framework is being prepared for the site, which will identify an appropriate layout, built form and street hierarchy of development, alongside key infrastructure requirements. This framework will support the AAP submission document in demonstrating how the RIS will be developed and delivered. In addition it will help in the marketing of the site to prospective developers.
These are but a few examples of the drive and dynamism that characterise our city as we move forward to strengthen the range of opportunities for local people and businesses. I am sure you will join me in fully supporting these projects to ensure that the Birmingham of the 21st century is a city that can compete locally, nationally and internationally.
Mobile app developers and creative businesses throughout the Midlands are being invited to apply for a unique one day workshop with Nokia and top international creative agency, Wieden + Kennedy, for a chance to win £25,000 to develop a new mobile app for Nokia’s Ovi store.
The workshop, set to take place in Birmingham on 30th June, will include support from key Nokia personnel and marketing pointers from Wieden + Kennedy. One winning attendee will receive £25,000 to have their app idea brought to life, with further marketing support from Nokia’s Ovi Store and Wieden + Kennedy.
For more information and how to apply – please click here.
The DigitalBIC project looks to provide a platform for SME’s to showcase new technologies/services to be used by other sectors within the creative industries.
The DigiBIC main objective is to set up a European network to facilitate technologies deployment for the creative sector. The idea is that SMEs would be able to use this platform to showcase new technologies/services that are ready for market but that could be used by other sectors within the creative industries. The network would gather both technologies users and developers which mean researchers, SMEs, industries players would be interested in joining the network.
For further information, please visit www.digibic.eu
A brief follow-up to the NEC showcase event at Battersea Power Station on 6th April where Touch2View and Pebu were proud to launch their new iTab, a large format interactive tablet designed to present the latest apps and app based content for digital signage and display.
The day was a great success and Pebu received many positive reactions to the new iTab from a large cross section of visitors from Architects to Airports, Banks, Retailers, Museums, Ad Agencies, Event Organisers and Publishers. They were all particularly enticed by the familiar design of the display and its unique ability to engage an audience already used to interacting with tablet and app based content in their daily lives.
Please click on the image below for more information and to access the video link of the iTab.
Digital Birmingham is a Birmingham City Council initiative and part of a city wide strategic partnership of more than 40 public, private and voluntary organisations
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