Glasgow City Region has secured a one-year funding extension of its Smart and Connected Social Places programme.

Glasgow will share a further funding pot of £7 million along with other 5G Innovation Regions, building on the original £36 million programme that kicked off in 2023.

Led by Glasgow City Region and backed by the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT), the Smart and Connected Social Places programme is seeking to harness the power of connectivity, digital and data to transform services and improve lives.

In the period since 2023, a programme of six projects across the eight local council areas have been focused on:

• keeping people safe, well, and socially connected in their homes and local communities;
• boosting 5G connectivity across the Region and providing residents with access to accurate data on their mobile phone coverage and signal strength; and
• driving innovation in services to people through a new Innovation Fund for SMEs and the third sector.

An exercise to map mobile phone connectivity across the Region is allowing residents to access a free tool to understand which mobile networks provide the fastest speeds outside their homes, businesses or other locations of interest.  The largest mobile phone coverage survey in Scotland is being carried out across Glasgow City Region with the assistance of bin lorries.

Bin lorries are hosting equipment which is gathering data about the strength of signal from the UK’s four mobile operators, street by street while people’s bins are being emptied.  Residents will be able to see the signal strength that EE, Vodafone, Three and O2/Virgin Media offer within a 30-metre radius outside of their homes/businesses.

The study will help to identify areas that have little or no mobile coverage and data will be used to lobby providers to make wireless technology improvements to allow individuals and organisations to make informed decisions about which providers to choose.

The Innovation Fund is supporting 11 local projects that address real world problems in Glasgow City Region, with funding between ten thousand and one hundred thousand pounds. Every one of the 11 projects has demonstrated innovative technologies and approaches that will go on to improve services, experiences and, ultimately, quality of life for those living across Glasgow City Region and the wider UK.

The 5G Programme extension will focus on two key Smart Social Housing and Social care projects which include connected sensors to monitor damp, mould, and heating in social homes, digital technologies, such as smart speakers, to support care and wellbeing services for vulnerable people and improve digital inclusion.

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Chair of the Glasgow City Region Cabinet and leader of Glasgow City Council, Susan Aitken said: “Glasgow City Region has always been at the forefront of technology and innovation and I’m delighted to see how the creative use of digital technology is improving lives.

“The extension to our 5G innovation programme is already helping local people to live more independently, improving public services for tenants and giving residents and businesses access to data to help make more informed choices about technology.”