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COVID-19 update

UK restrictions are changing on a weekly basis, including the introduction of Tier 4. We know all too well the challenges that businesses are currently facing and therefore we’re here to help. We have changed some of the ways we work, but we are still focused on keeping you connected, productive and secure.

Government help updateAfter the UK Government announced the nationwide lockdown requirements on 23 March 2020, many businesses were forced to move to a remote working model.

In earlier announcements, business categories with UK key workers were identified, and Timico was included in that category. As a supplier of connectivity, voice, cyber security, cloud and hosting and IT managed services to our customers, we continue to provide critical business infrastructure to many businesses (including in the healthcare and public sector).

Whilst our ability to support our customers has been strengthened by the inclusion in this category, we took further measures internally to protect the wellbeing of our people and to ensure business continuity.

Within a week, we enabled all our colleagues who could work from home to do so, as per the guidance issued by the government. We successfully executed our business continuity plan, so our customers could concentrate on other business priorities. Our key workers were, and continue to be, supported with contingency plans in place and daily guidance and support.

Christmas Change Freeze

Our annual change freeze is now in operation, and therefore we will not be making any changes to our shared platform during the period of 14 December to 1 January inclusive. For more information on our Change Freeze, please click here.

Brexit – 1 January 2021

We are a UK-based business however some of our vendors ship goods from international locations. Please be aware that as a result of Covid-19 restrictions and Brexit taking effect from January 1, 2021, there may be delays on shipping; and this should be taken into consideration for project delivery timelines. We will pass on any relevant communications from our vendors as we receive them if we are notified of any delays.

Openreach MBORC

Due to the extensive government restrictions, Openreach announced Matters Beyond Our Reasonable Control (MBORC) provisions, with affected services including WLR, LLU, FTTC, FTTP, GFAST & Ethernet Access Direct. This declaration came into effect from midnight on 24 March and may have an impact on SLAs.

Service Delivery

Our service delivery is mainly in the UK, with some offshore delivery for specific customer requirements. This capability is geographically dispersed, which reduces the risk of a service-impacting outbreak. However, the changes outlined in the 24 March Openreach announcement will have an impact on our delivery, with more details below.

Also, with Brexit and Covid-19 affecting UK borders, we are working closely with our suppliers to ensure that should there be any delays, these will be communicated swiftly.

Customer site visits

Lockdown restrictions are changing on a weekly basis and we are constantly assessing the impacts of these on both ours and our suppliers’ field engineering teams and we take action to minimise any impact on service.

As lockdown requirements ease, we will continue to re-assess the impacts on both ours and our suppliers’ field engineering teams and we will take action to minimise impact on service. At this time, if there is a critical service requirement at a site that is within an essential business category, and facilities are still accessible, we will prioritise these service requirements. Currently, we are prioritising critical maintenance and fault resolution over new implementations.

Our engineers will attend site, as will our suppliers, and we will be asking our customers and our engineers to observe the social distancing and hygiene guidelines that the government has published. We request that all of our customers work with our engineers to ensure that we do our part to prioritise the operation of the UK’s critical services and support social distancing to protect our people and the NHS.

Timico data centres and site visits

All Timico data centre facilities remain fully operational, however we are looking to further protect your employees and ours whilst following government guidelines. In order to do so and minimise the risk of operational impact, we ask that customers adhere to temporary guidelines outlined here, with regards to access to our data centre.

Timico data centres and site visits - temporary guidelines

Project work

We are working hard to ensure continuity of projects as safely as possible under the developing guidelines. We implemented measures for all of our staff who can work from home to do so effectively; and provided guidance to our field and site engineers to ensure they remain safe if they need to visit customer sites or data centres. We will continue visits as needed where site visits are required for customers, adhering to government and social distancing guidelines. We ask for your co-operation and understanding in these decisions. If you require a site visit, please speak to your account team.

Business Continuity

Our comprehensive business continuity plan includes additional personal hygiene and awareness guidance to our colleagues. Our teams are embracing the new way of working, and although our offices remain open for critical staff, most meetings are being held virtually. We welcome the opportunity to connect with you and your teams by teleconference or video conference at this time.

We appreciate these are challenging times and restrictions in response to Covid-19 will have implications across your businesses. We will continue to update this page to provide the confidence that we are doing everything we can to support our customers at this critical time, and we hope you and your colleagues stay healthy and safe.

Covid-19 funding and grants available for small businesses

New Bounce Back loans available

Britain’s small businesses were able to apply for quick and easy-to access loans of up to £50,000 from 4 May 2020. As part of the scheme, small businesses could borrow between £2,000 and £50,000. Click the sub-heading link for more information.

Top-up to local business grant funds scheme

An additional 5% uplift was added to the £12.33 billion funding previously announced for the Small Business Grants Fund (SBGF) and the Retail, Hospitality and Leisure Grants Fund (RHLGF), up to £617 million. This additional fund is aimed at small businesses with ongoing fixed property-related costs. Businesses must be small, under 50 employees, and they must also be able to demonstrate that they have seen a significant drop of income due to Coronavirus restriction measures.

See here for guidance for local authorities setting out details of the Small Business Grants Fund (SBGF) and Retail, Hospitality and Leisure Grant Fund (RHLGF).

£6.1 million funding boost to help high streets and town centres through pandemic

Additional information for our specialist customer verticals

Letter to the Retail Sector

Letter to the Construction and Manufacturing sector

Funding to support the legal sector

Guidance for the charity sector

 

We’re providing the below documents to support you and your teams to work from home efficiently, and safely.

For more information about how to get the most out of your connectivity, download our guidance here.

Click here to download helpful tips on how to keep your business better protected at this time.

Find useful tips for how to keep your home workers connected and productive, here.

Download our guidance on COVID-19 scam tactics you should be aware of.
For updates from authorities, please visit the links provided below:
https://www.gov.uk/government/topical-events/coronavirus-covid-19-uk-government-response
https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019

Timico

We deliver Connectivity, UC&C, Cloud & Hosting, Security and IT Managed Service Solutions to our customers, through Service Operations based in Newark, Winnersh, Telford and London.

Jul 20, 2020

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