Network operator charter agreed

A network operator charter was developed in March 2024, setting out commitments from communications network operators on how customers, including telecare users, are moved from analogue to digital phone lines, according to the government's Telecare National Action Plan published on 11 February 2025¹.

The plan states that the charter commits operators to giving 12 months' notice before ceasing analogue voice services and to checks for telecare devices¹. It sits alongside a voluntary agreement signed in December 2023 by the UK's major communication providers to protect vulnerable customers when they are moved onto digital services¹. The Telecare Action Board (TAB) was established in January 2024, with BT Consumer leading its formation, and is described as the primary vehicle for ongoing engagement between stakeholders on telecare and the switchover¹.

The background is the retirement of the analogue landline network, announced by BT Group in 2017¹. The plan says the analogue network is decades old and failure rates are increasing as the infrastructure ages, and that some required equipment is no longer manufactured, making spare parts difficult to access¹. It adds that devices designed to operate on analogue landlines have a higher rate of failure when connected to digital telephone lines¹. The plan records that there have been serious incidents, including a small number of fatalities, where telecare devices failed to work properly after the switchover¹.

Upwards of 2 million people in the UK use telecare, most commonly personal alarm pendants or buttons, and users are often older and/or more vulnerable people¹. The plan sets an outcome that no telecare user will be migrated to digital landline services without the communication provider, the customer or the telecare service provider confirming a compatible and functioning telecare solution is in place¹. Ofcom introduced an incident reporting framework in spring 2024 to monitor the nature and volume of incidents, and reports to DSIT quarterly¹. Ofcom provided its first report to DSIT in July 2024¹.

Why it matters for households

The plan says most customers can expect their telephone lines to have made the switch by the end of January 2027, and that the digital upgrade is broadly expected to be fully completed in 2027¹. For households with a personal alarm or care line, the change affects the equipment that raises the alarm call, not just the telephone. The plan states that an analogue telecare system may not function as intended, noting that Which? updated its telecare guide in August 2024 to remind consumers of this¹. It also records that the Minister of State for Social Care and the Minister of State for Data Protection and Telecoms jointly wrote to directors of adult social services in September 2024¹.

The plan applies to England only, but states that the digital phone switchover will affect all devolved nations¹. It also notes Virgin Media O2's plans to withdraw roaming services on their 2G network from October 2025, and that providers do not intend to offer 2G and 3G mobile networks beyond the end of 2033 at the latest¹. Households can check when their area is due to change on our guide to when the analogue phone network switches off, and what the change means for alarms in our guide to telecare and personal alarms when phone lines go digital. The staying-informed hub and the extra-help hub cover wider preparations, and free alert services lists sign-up options for local warnings.

What happens next

The plan states that government will work with telecare suppliers and service providers to establish a timeline for phasing out analogue telecare devices and will communicate a deadline in the coming months¹. As announced on 3 January 2025, this includes defining and publishing a minimum set of standards¹. DHSC and DSIT will review progress against the action plan every 6 months¹. The plan supersedes the existing DHSC Telecare stakeholder action plan first published in December 2022 and updated in September 2023¹.