The 2027 Landline Switch-Off: What UK Care Homes Must Do Now

Every care home in the UK with an analogue landline or ISDN phone line must migrate to a digital alternative before January 2027. BT is switching off the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) and ISDN services across the UK, and any device that runs over those networks — including standard phone lines, some broadband connections, and critically, many telecare alarms — will stop working unless switched in advance. The deadline applies to all organisations, but the stakes for care homes are higher than for most businesses: falling alarms, emergency call systems, and out-of-hours family communications all depend on the phone line working reliably.

What is the PSTN switch-off?

The PSTN is the traditional copper telephone network that has carried UK phone calls since the 1870s. BT and other network operators are replacing it with an all-digital (Voice over Internet Protocol, or VoIP) infrastructure. The switch-off was originally planned for December 2025 but was delayed to January 2027 specifically because of concerns about vulnerable users and safety-critical devices — including telecare alarms used in care settings.

Once the switch-off happens, analogue phone lines and ISDN connections will simply stop working. This affects:

• Standard landline handsets connected to analogue sockets
• ISDN lines used for multi-line office phone systems
• Fax machines connected to standard phone lines
• Broadband connections delivered over ADSL or FTTC that depend on PSTN
• Telecare and personal alarm devices that use the phone line to connect to monitoring centres

Why this matters more for care homes than most organisations

Most businesses switching from a landline to VoIP face one challenge: making sure calls still work. Care homes face three.

Telecare and alarm systems. An estimated 2.3 million people in the UK currently use personal alarms or telecare devices that rely on the phone network. In a care home setting, these include fall detection pendants, nurse call systems with outgoing dial-out alerts, door security systems, and lifeline services. Many of these devices were designed for analogue lines and will not automatically work on a digital connection. Some have been found to stop functioning entirely during initial migration tests. The Telecare Action Board (TAB) exists specifically to manage this transition for vulnerable users — but the work of auditing and replacing incompatible devices falls to the home itself.

Power cut dependency. A traditional landline works even in a power cut, because it draws power from the phone network. A VoIP line does not — it requires power at the premises (router, power adaptor, handsets). Ofcom requires phone providers to ensure access to emergency services for at least one hour during a power outage, but this places responsibility on the care home to either have backup power for its communications hardware or to verify their provider's failover solution. In a care setting where a power cut and a medical emergency can coincide, this is not a theoretical risk.

Out-of-hours reliability. Care homes receive calls at all hours, including from families with urgent welfare concerns, GPs, district nurses, and on-call services. Any disruption to the phone line during migration — even briefly — creates a gap in communications that cannot easily be recovered. Planning for a smooth cutover, with adequate testing time, matters more in a care setting than in most workplaces.

What you need to do before January 2027

1. Audit every device on your phone line. Start with a list of everything connected to a phone socket or ISDN line in the building: handsets, fax machines, alarm systems, lifeline devices, door entry systems, CCTV systems with remote monitoring. Identify which provider manages each and what protocol they use. For telecare and alarm systems, ask the supplier directly whether their device is compatible with VoIP or requires a replacement.

2. Check your broadband. If your internet connection arrives via ADSL or FTTC, it is likely bundled with your phone line. When the PSTN goes off, some of these connections will need to be migrated to a fibre-only service (FTTP). Your broadband provider should contact you in advance, but it is worth checking proactively rather than waiting to be told.

3. Plan for broadband resilience. VoIP phones require working internet. If your broadband goes down, so does your phone unless you have a backup. Options include a 4G/5G mobile broadband router as a failover, or a hosted system that can route calls to a mobile number automatically if the primary line fails. Either way, the question to ask any VoIP provider is: "What happens to incoming calls if our broadband goes down?"

4. Ask your telecoms provider for a migration plan. Most providers are already contacting business customers in advance of the switch-off. Ask them for a proposed migration date, what the cutover process looks like, and how long you should expect any disruption to last. Request that the migration happens during lower-traffic hours and that you have a test period before the analogue line is disconnected.

5. Update your telecare and alarm suppliers separately. Do not assume that migrating your main phone line will automatically update your alarm systems. Alarm devices may need firmware updates, replacement units, or a different connection method entirely. Raise this separately with each supplier.

How AI call management fits in

AI call management tools for care homes — including CareTime's Silent Guard — work over digital phone lines and do not rely on the analogue PSTN. If your home is already running on VoIP or is in the process of migrating, AI call monitoring can be layered on top without hardware changes: it connects to your existing number via a call-forwarding rule, monitors incoming calls, screens nuisance callers, and delivers a Morning Brief to your manager each morning with a summary of the previous day's calls.

The migration to digital infrastructure is an opportunity, as well as a requirement. Care homes that are migrating their phone systems in 2026 and early 2027 can use that transition to review their broader communications setup — including whether call monitoring, better out-of-hours handling, and CQC evidence logging are features worth adding alongside the basic VoIP migration.

The January 2027 deadline is firm. Starting now gives you enough time to audit devices, work through alarm system upgrades, and do a tested migration without pressure. Starting in autumn 2026 may not.

CareTime's Silent Guard AI call monitoring works over modern digital phone lines, with no hardware to install and no phone system changes required. Start a 30-day pilot for £49.