The UK’s telecoms network is undergoing its biggest change since the introduction of digital exchanges: the retirement of the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN). BT and Openreach are withdrawing the copper-based analogue network that has carried phone calls – and a great deal of other data – for over a century, replacing it with IP-based digital voice services running over full-fibre broadband.
The cut-off date is 31 January 2027, and BT has confirmed there will be no further delay. For most businesses this is a phone system upgrade. For care homes, it’s something more serious: many of the systems that keep residents safe – nurse call systems, personal alarms, lift alarms, and door entry – were quietly built on the same analogue network that’s being switched off.
Why This Is Different for Care Homes
Care homes sit at the sharp end of this change for reasons that don’t apply to most other sectors:
Life-safety systems depend on it. Nurse call systems, personal pendant alarms, and telecare devices that alert staff or monitoring centres in an emergency have traditionally connected via the PSTN. Once a line is migrated to digital, non-upgraded devices can silently stop working – with no dial tone to alert anyone that something has failed.
Power cuts become a bigger risk. Digital voice services run through a home hub or router, which needs mains power. Unlike the old copper network, calls (and connected alarms) can stop working in a power cut unless battery backup is in place. For a care setting, that’s a genuine safety gap, not just an inconvenience.
Regulatory exposure. CQC inspections look closely at how a home manages risk to residents’ safety and wellbeing. A care home that hasn’t reviewed which of its systems depend on the old network – and hasn’t got a continuity plan for the switchover – may struggle to evidence that it has properly managed a known, well-publicised risk.
Fragmented responsibility. Alarm systems, telecare devices, and phone lines are often supplied and maintained by different providers, on different contracts, installed at different times. It’s easy for no single person to have full visibility of every device in a home that still relies on the copper network – which is exactly how systems get missed until they fail.
What Actually Changes
Once a line is migrated (or a local exchange is switched off), calls and data are carried digitally over broadband rather than a dedicated copper circuit. In practice this means:
- Any device that plugs into an analogue phone socket – including older nurse call and telecare systems – needs to be checked for digital compatibility, and may need replacing or adapting with an analogue telephone adapter (ATA).
- Alarm calls will route through the home’s broadband hub, so the reliability and capacity of the internet connection now directly affects resident safety systems, not just admin and communications.
- Without a battery backup unit, a power cut takes down phones and any connected alarms at the same time – precisely when residents may most need them to work.
- Test calls that used to confirm a device was working (the dial tone) may no longer behave the same way, so devices need to be actively tested after migration, not assumed to be fine.
The Risk of Waiting
Councils and providers report genuine cases of alarms and telecare devices failing silently after migration – sometimes only discovered by chance. As the January 2027 deadline approaches, engineer availability and installation slots for both broadband upgrades and device replacements will only get tighter, and a home migrated in a rush is far more likely to end up with gaps in its safety net than one that planned months ahead.
What Care Homes Should Be Doing Now
- Audit every line and device, not just the reception phone – nurse call, personal alarms, lift alarms, door entry, and fire/security systems.
- Check with every device supplier whether existing equipment is digital-compatible, or whether it needs replacing.
- Confirm broadband capacity and resilience – voice and alarm traffic will share the same connection as everything else the home does online.
- Put battery backup in place so phones and connected alarm systems keep working through a power cut.
- Test everything after migration – don’t assume a device works just because it did before switchover; a physical test call is the only way to be sure.
- Involve IT and telecare specialists early, rather than waiting to be contacted as part of a mass switchover in the area. Homes that migrate proactively keep far more control over timing and disruption.
The Opportunity
Done properly, the switchover is a chance to modernise systems that, in many homes, are genuinely overdue an upgrade. Digital nurse call and telecare platforms can offer better reporting, remote monitoring, and faster response times than analogue equivalents – alongside a phone system that’s easier to manage across multiple sites.
The deadline is fixed. The only real variable left is how much control a home has over its own migration – and that depends entirely on how early it starts planning.
Get Ahead of the Switchover
FosseTech works with care providers to plan and manage a smooth, disruption-free move away from legacy telephony and connected safety systems – from auditing every line and device to designing a resilient setup with proper power backup built in.
Book a free telephony audit and find out exactly what’s exposed in your home before the January 2027 deadline arrives – get in touch with FosseTech today.
