The UK’s old analogue phone network, the PSTN, is being switched off. Lines that have carried school phones, alarms and lift phones for decades are being replaced by digital services over broadband. The date has slipped before, and is currently reported as 31 January 2027 (confirm the latest date with your provider), so the sensible time to check your school is now, not the week before.
This post is for heads, school business managers and whoever looks after IT or the premises.
What is actually being switched off?
The PSTN is the copper-based voice network behind traditional phone lines and Wholesale Line Rental. Providers are moving customers to digital voice (VoIP), which sends calls over a broadband connection.
It’s not only your phones
Many schools find the office phones are the easy part. Things that may depend on a phone line include:
- lift emergency phones
- fire alarm signalling to a monitoring centre
- intruder alarm signalling
- door entry and intercom systems
- card payment terminals and some franking machines
- some fax or legacy modem-based equipment
Power cuts change things
A copper line carries its own small amount of power, so basic phones often worked in a power cut. A digital line needs power at the school end, so ask your provider about battery backup and what your plan is for emergency calls during an outage.
Who is responsible?
| Who | Job |
|---|---|
| Head / SBM | Own the risk, approve budget and timing |
| Site manager / estates | List alarms, lifts, door entry and who maintains them |
| IT support | Check network capacity, quality of service and handset or softphone options |
| Office manager | List lines, numbers and who answers them |
What to do next
This is general guidance, not a substitute for advice from your telecoms provider, local authority or trust. Dates and requirements differ between providers, so confirm yours with Openreach or your supplier.
- List every phone line and what is connected to it.
- Ask each maintenance supplier (lifts, fire, intruder, door entry) whether their kit will work on digital lines.
- Check whether your council, trust or broadband provider has set its own earlier deadline.
- Check your broadband is resilient enough to carry voice, and consider a backup connection.
- Decide on handsets, softphones or a hosted system, and a plan for power cuts.
- Schedule changes for a holiday, not term time.
- Keep your published school numbers unchanged when you move.
Where Next Generation IT fits
If you’d like help mapping what depends on your lines, we offer school phone systems and school IT support in Leeds alongside broadband. See also school broadband.