What do schools need to do for the switchover?
All schools, whether state or private (including boarding schools) will need to get ready for switchover. TVs that are used exclusively for playing DVDs or Videos will not be affected by switchover. However, in other instances e.g. TVs used in staff or common rooms and where the TV is connected to an aerial to watch or record TV programmes, the aerial and equipment will need to be checked and/or upgraded to receive digital signals after switchover.
Any system under 10 years old should carry the digital TV signal through the aerial (Freeview) with no difficulty. You will need to convert or replace each TV set that they would like to continue watching after the switchover with a digital box or digital TV. A general rule is that if good quality pictures can be obtained with today’s analogue signal, then good quality digital pictures should be obtained after switchover. Whoever is usually responsible for the property management of the school will need to decide if they should continue to rely on digital boxes after switchover, or whether to upgrade the building with, for example, a communal TV system.
