Telecommunications apparatus and methods

1. A base station for transmitting system related information in a mobile telecommunications network, the base station being configured to:

transmit system information for a cell provided by the base station;

broadcast a first synchronization signal for use for terminal to achieve synchronization with the cell; and

broadcast a second synchronisation signal more frequently than the first synchronisation signal, wherein the second synchronisation signal provides version information regarding the current version of the system information for the cell.

2. The base station of claim 1 , further configured to:

broadcast the first synchronisation signal periodically at a first time frequency and the second synchronisation signal periodically at a second time frequency, the second time frequency being higher than the first time frequency.

3. The base station of claim 1 , further configured to:

broadcast the second synchronisation signal based on one or both of:

a sequence that differs from a sequence used for transmitting the first synchronisation signal; and

a scrambling configuration that differs from a scrambling configuration used to transmit the first synchronisation signal.

4. The base station of claim 1 , further configured to

broadcast the second synchronisation signal based on a number, the number indicating the current version of the system information for the cell, wherein the number is used to derive one or both of a sequence and a scrambling configuration for transmitting the second synchronisation signal.

5. The base station of claim 1 wherein the version information regarding the current version of the system information for the cell comprises one or more of:

an indication that the current version of the system information has changed compared to a previous version of the system information that was in use at a previous point in time;

an indication that the current version of the system information has changed compared to a previous version of the system information that was in use at a previous point in time wherein the previous point in time is identified based on a predetermined time difference; and

an indication of a current version number, the version number being incremented at each system information change, the version number being selected from a circular list of n elements, with n≥2.

6. The base station of claim 1 , further configured to:

provide the second synchronisation signal as two or more separate signals forming together the second synchronisation signal.

7. The base station of claim 1 , further configured to:

broadcast the second synchronisation signal using two or more separate frequency bands.

8. The base station of claim 7 , further configured to broadcast the second synchronisation signal according to one or more of:

a transmission of a first portion of the second synchronisation signal as a continuous signal in a first of the two or more separate frequency bands or as a non-contiguous signal in the first frequency band; and

a transmission of a second portion of the second synchronisation signal as a continuous signal in a second of the two or more separate frequency bands or as a non-contiguous signal in the second frequency band.

9. A method of transmitting system related information in a mobile telecommunications network, the network comprising a base station configured to transmit system information for the cell provided by the base station, the method comprising:

broadcasting, by the base station, a first synchronisation signal for use for terminals to achieve synchronisation with the cell;

broadcasting, by the base station, a second synchronisation signal mole frequently than the first synchronisation signal, wherein the second synchronisation signal provides version information regarding the current version of the system information for the cell.

10. The method of claim 9 , wherein

the first synchronisation signal is transmitted periodically at a first time frequency and the second synchronisation signal is transmitted periodically at a second time frequency, the second time frequency being higher than the first time frequency.

11. The method of claim 9 , wherein the second synchronisation signal is transmitted based on one or both of:

a sequence that differs from a sequence used for transmitting the first synchronisation signal; and

a scrambling configuration that differs from a scrambling configuration used to transmit the first synchronisation signal.

12. The method of claim 9 , wherein

the second synchronisation signal is transmitted based on a number, the number indicating the current version of the system information for the cell, wherein the number is used to derive one or both of a sequence and a scrambling configuration for transmitting the second synchronisation signal.

13. The method of claim 9 wherein the version information regarding the current version of the system information for the cell comprises one or more of:

an indication that the current version of the system information has changed compared to a previous version of the system information that was in use at a previous point in time;

an indication that the current version of the system information has changed compared to a previous version of the system information that was in use at a previous point in time wherein the previous point in time is identified based on a predetermined time difference; and

an indication of a current version number, the version number being incremented at each system information change, the version number being selected from a circular list of n elements, with n≥2.

14. The method of claim 9 , wherein the second synchronisation signal is provided as two or more separate signals forming together the second synchronisation signal.

15. The method of claim 9 , wherein

the second synchronisation signal is transmitted using two or more separate frequency bands.

16. Circuitry for an infrastructure equipment for a mobile telecommunications network, the circuitry configured to:

transmit system information for a cell of the mobile telecommunications network;

broadcast a first synchronization signal for use for terminal to achieve synchronization with the cell; and

broadcast a second synchronisation signal more frequently than the first synchronisation signal, wherein the second synchronisation signal provides version information regarding the current version of the system information for the cell.