What is still running on the old phone lines, and when does each thing need to move?

Openreach withdraws the analogue phone network and ISDN on 31 January 2027, and new lines have not been sold since 2023. The phones are the easy part. The lift line, the alarm dialler, the card machine and the broadband on the phone line each need a different replacement, a different specialist and a different lead time. This turns your list into dates.

PSTN switch-off readiness

What is still running on the old phone lines?

Openreach switches off the traditional phone network on 31 January 2027, and you have not been able to order new analogue lines since 2023. Tick what your sites still have on those lines and you get a dated plan back, longest lead times first.

Phones are the easy part. The things people forget are the lift line, the alarm dialler, the card machine in the back office and the broadband that rides on the phone line. Each one has a different replacement and a different lead time, and some need a specialist to sign them off. Nothing you tick here leaves your browser.

Still on a phone line at any of your sites

Tick everything that applies. If you are not sure, tick it; the plan tells you how to find out.

Sites

Lines or channels

Phone contract ends

Lines or channels is the count on your phone bill: analogue lines, or ISDN channels. Leave it blank if you don't know.

A dated plan appears here: what to replace, with what, who needs to sign it off and the latest sensible date for each step before 31 January 2027.

How it works

Four steps, no account.

Tick what you have

Desk phones, broadband on a phone line, lift phones, alarms, card machines, fax, door entry, telecare and anything else that dials out. Not sure is an answer.

Add the shape

How many sites, how many lines or channels from the bill and when the current phone contract ends.

Get the dates

Each item becomes a step with the replacement, who has to fit or sign it off and the latest sensible start date, worked back from the switch-off with normal lead times.

Start with the specialists

Lift companies, alarm companies and telecare providers are the national bottleneck. Copy the plan, or ask us to run the whole move.

Straight answers

Questions about this tool.

Is the date really January 2027?

Yes. Openreach moved the withdrawal of the analogue network and ISDN from December 2025 to 31 January 2027 in 2024. Providers are moving customers over region by region ahead of it, so your lines may go earlier, not later.

Our phone contract runs past that. Are we covered?

No. The contract does not keep the line working; the network does. Ask your provider now what they are migrating you to and read the early-exit terms before you sign anything new.

What about power cuts?

An analogue phone worked in a power cut because the exchange powered it. Digital phones need the router powered, so put a small UPS on it and check lift and alarm units have their own batteries. Your provider must offer a way to reach 999 in a power cut; ask what it is.

Can we just put an adapter on the router?

For a desk phone, often yes. For a lift line, an alarm dialler or telecare, no: those have their own standards (EN 81-28, BS 5839-1) and their protocols fail unpredictably over digital lines. The specialist who maintains them must sign the replacement off.

Does 64TEQ do this?

Yes. We audit the lines with you, order the connectivity, move the phones to RingCentral with the numbers ported and coordinate the lift, alarm and card machine suppliers so nothing is left on a line that is about to stop.

Take the result to a person.

This tool is part of our cloud telephony and contact centre work. A specialist reads what you found and says what we would do next, and if the answer is nothing, we say that.

Message a specialist on WhatsApp → Speak to a person · 0203 858 0264 Email michelle.nayee@64teq.com

What is still running on the old phone lines, and when does each thing need to move?