The Digital Switchover in Brighton: What It Means for Your Personal Alarm
Analogue phone lines across Brighton and Hove are switched off on 31 January 2027. Every landline becomes digital. If someone you look after has a pendant alarm plugged into the phone socket, it may no longer be able to reach a monitoring centre. Brighton & Hove City Council runs its own service, CareLink Plus.
Key facts
- The analogue phone network (PSTN) is retired on 31 January 2027.
- Brighton & Hove City Council runs CareLink Plus, its alarm and telecare service, on 0300 123 3301.
- Affected postcodes are BN1, BN2, BN3 and BN41, covering Brighton, Kemptown, Hove, Portslade, Patcham, Woodingdean, Moulsecoomb and Saltdean.
- The council has not published switchover guidance for CareLink Plus customers.
What is changing in Brighton, and when?
Openreach is retiring the analogue telephone network by 31 January 2027, and every home line from Hangleton to Rottingdean moves onto a digital service carried over the broadband connection. The handset plugs into the router rather than the wall socket and the number stays the same. The programme is run by the telecoms industry rather than the city council, though Ofcom and government both have formal roles in protecting customers during it.
Mobile networks are moving too. Ofcom has confirmed that 3G networks are now switched off. Any alarm that relied on a 3G only SIM has already lost its connection, which matters in Brighton because a large number of alarms here were bought privately rather than issued by the council.
Will my personal alarm still work after the switch-off?
Only if it is digital ready or connects over the mobile network. Analogue alarms signal in audio tones down a copper line and a digital line does not always carry them intact. The Telecare National Action Plan from DHSC and DSIT commits that no telecare user should be moved to a digital landline until someone has confirmed a compatible and functioning telecare solution is in place, but that depends on the phone company knowing an alarm exists at the address.
A digital landline also needs mains power. When the electricity goes off in a Kemptown basement flat, the router goes off and the phone with it. Ofcom requires providers to give at least one hour of access to emergency organisations during a power cut, and says they should offer battery backup free of charge to customers who depend on their landline to call the emergency services. That protects 999 calls, not the alarm.
How do I check whether my alarm uses the phone line?
- Look at the base unit. A thin cable into a white phone socket means an analogue alarm at risk. A cable into the broadband router means it has already been moved. A power lead alone usually means a mobile unit.
- Check who monitors it. CareLink Plus units are monitored by the council. Private units carry a company sticker with a number.
- Test it and check the keyholders. Press the button, say it is a test, and confirm the operator has the right address and the right two keyholders on file.
What about alarms provided by Brighton & Hove City Council?
The council runs CareLink Plus, its alarm and telecare service, on 0300 123 3301 or at CareLinkPlus@brighton-hove.gov.uk. It supplies an alarm unit and an emergency button worn on a cord or wrist strap, plus optional sensors including smoke, heat, carbon monoxide and flood detectors, falls detection, door sensors, seizure sensors and GPS locators.
Two local details are worth knowing. First, the council asks for a minimum of two keyholders in the Brighton & Hove area, or agreement to install a keysafe, which is a real obstacle for people whose family live elsewhere. Second, the pricing is published: £25.41 a month for the standard package and £30.36 for the enhanced package, with a four week free trial for people leaving hospital or supported by an informal carer.
On the switchover, the council's own information notes that if you do not have a landline telephone connection it can supply a unit that uses the mobile network, subject to sufficient signal strength in your home. That is helpful, but it is an option offered to people without a landline rather than a plan for migrating existing analogue users. We could not find any Brighton & Hove page setting out a switchover timetable for CareLink Plus. If a council alarm is in the house, ring 0300 123 3301 and ask whether your base unit is digital ready.
What should Brighton residents do now?
Tell the phone provider that a personal alarm is used at the address. That is the step that triggers the national protections, and it takes one short call.
Then look at the alarm. If it is CareLink Plus, ring the council. If it is private, treat it as needing replacement until confirmed otherwise. A mobile connected alarm sidesteps the landline question, which suits the converted Regency houses and basement flats around Brunswick and Hanover where the broadband may belong to a landlord or a shared supply. Any replacement should run on 4G. If your relative has no keyholders nearby, check what arrangement each provider expects before you commit.
The single most important point for Brighton
CareLink Plus normally expects two keyholders living in the Brighton & Hove area or a keysafe fitted. If your parent's family live out of town, sort that out at the same time as the digital question, because a working alarm with nobody able to reach the flat is only half a solution.
Checking an alarm for someone in Brighton or Hove?
Our UK monitoring centre in Southport answers alarm calls 24 hours a day, and 99.6% of alarm calls are answered in under 60 seconds. We can explain what to look for, with no obligation.
Telephone 01704 332840 | info@holdengrange.com
Book a free call with HannahFrequently asked questions
CareLink Plus, described by the council as its alarm and telecare service. It provides a base unit, a wearable button and optional sensors such as falls detection, smoke and flood detectors and GPS locators. Contact 0300 123 3301 or CareLinkPlus@brighton-hove.gov.uk.
The council publishes £25.41 a month for the standard package and £30.36 a month for the enhanced package. A four week free trial is offered to people being discharged from hospital or supported by an informal carer. A home assessment is arranged before installation.
Not that we can find. Its service information mentions supplying a mobile network unit where there is no landline, subject to signal strength, but there is no published timetable for migrating existing analogue users. Ring 0300 123 3301 and ask about your own equipment.
Yes. Our monitoring centre is in Southport and serves the whole UK, so BN1, BN2, BN3 and BN41 are covered, including Hangleton, Patcham, Woodingdean, Rottingdean and Saltdean. Alarms are posted out and set up at home, with no assessment and no waiting list.
Where to start: ring CareLink Plus or your alarm provider, tell your phone company an alarm is in use, then plan a digital ready replacement. See our SOS pendant alarms in Brighton page, our digital switchover guide, or read whether you need wifi or a landline for a personal alarm. Ofcom explains the protections during migration to digital landlines. Call our UK team on 01704 332840.
Holden Grange is a UK telecare provider based in Southport, a TSA member and certified under the TEC Quality Standards Framework. Our alarm receiving centre is UK based and operates 24 hours a day.