The Countess, the Drapers and the Wi-Fi

How a small Wi-Fi issue resulted in dinner at the Drapers Livery Hall with a Countess

A complex sequence of events starting in December last year resulted in me receiving an invitation to attend the Royal Hospital for Neuro-disability Gala Dinner. The purpose of the dinner was to raise vital funds to improve facilities for patients and residents at the hospital.

The hospital – a national medical charity – specialises in the care and rehabilitation of people who have acquired brain injuries and degenerative neurological conditions. The hospital was founded in 1854, and is set in very picturesque grounds in Putney. The Royal Hospital for Neuro-disability is the oldest independent hospital and medical charity in the UK, and is also one of the most respected. My experience has been with the rehabilitation side of their work where they provide a range of services including physiotherapy, occupational therapy, speech and language therapy and psychology. Some of these services are available to family members as well as the patients so it really is a fully rounded service delivered by an excellent team of professionals.

“…you may be wondering what this has to do with Wi-Fi?”

You may be wondering what this has to do with Wi-Fi. My daughter has been a patient in Drapers Ward (coincidentally) since mid February. Within a few days of arrival she gave some fairly harsh feedback on the reliability of the patient Wi-Fi network and asked me to investigate it (“sort it out Dad”). This led me to a meeting with the IT and fund raising team in the hospital where I had the amazing good fortune to be invited to attend the Gala Dinner as a guest of the President.

This year The Royal Hospital for Neuro-disability was chosen as the Master of the Worshipful Company of Drapers charity of the year. As part of the sponsorship The Drapers provided their Livery Hall as a venue for the Gala Dinner. Drapers Hall is a stunningly decadent venue that has featured in a number of films including The King’s Speech (King George VI was a member) and Goldeneye. The Drapers Livery Company was founded in 1361 and was the third Livery Company to be incorporated by Royal Charter. It is, therefore, one of the Great 12 – the first 12 Livery Companies in the City of London.

“…some very interesting and moving speeches by The Master and hospital staff”

The evening was nothing short of spectacular. Great wine, food and conversation. There were some very interesting and moving speeches by The Master and hospital staff and I am sure the event raised a considerable sum for the hospital, at time of publishing this blog the event had already raised over £100,000 with more funds coming in.

As a Freeman of a Livery Company myself, I love the City of London and the history and traditions so it was a real honour for me to be invited to the Gala Dinner at such an outstanding venue and especially to meet the President – Leonora, Countess of Lichfield. An evening I will never forget and I know the money raised will be put to excellent use helping people regain some quality of life after suffering a life changing event. Something that could happen to any one of us.

Back to the Wi-Fi problem. A common problem on public and guest Wi-Fi networks – insufficient DHCP range. With so many of the staff, visitors and patients having access to the Wi-Fi network and many of those people carrying more than one device configured to access the Wi-Fi, the IP addresses were running out. A problem soon resolved by the hospital IT team.

“…please consider supporting our team with a small donation”

We have a team of four in the hospital’s fund raising Row Hard event. This is an indoor rowing competition for teams of four being held in the top of City Hall, London. So please consider supporting our team with a small donation or join in the fun by entering your own team. Details via the links below.

Useful links…

For details on the RHN Row Hard eventand to enter your own team click here
To donate to support TeamAstro’s attempts at rowing their way out of City Hall click here
The Royal Hospital for Neuro-disability
Drapers Hall
For information on the Worshipful Company of Information Technologists click here