The Digital Switchover in Lincoln: What It Means for Your Personal Alarm

The analogue phone network is switched off on 31 January 2027. Personal alarms that dial out through a phone socket are the devices most at risk. Lincoln is better placed than most places, because City of Lincoln Council has been fitting digital telecare equipment through its LinCare service since 2019, but that only helps if your own unit is one of them.

What is changing in Lincoln, and when?

Every landline in the country is moving off the old copper network onto a digital connection carried over broadband. Openreach has confirmed it is "retiring the analogue phone network by 31st January 2027".

For most households the change is undramatic. An engineer visits or a kit arrives, the telephone plugs into the router instead of the wall socket, and calls carry on. The problem is everything else that was quietly using that line. Alarm units, some fall detectors and older warden call equipment in sheltered schemes were all designed for a network that will not exist. Across LN1 to LN6, and in villages such as Nettleham, Saxilby and Branston, these conversions are happening in batches now rather than in January 2027.

Will my personal alarm still work after the switch-off?

Only if it does not rely on the analogue line. An older alarm dials the monitoring centre using analogue tones. Digital lines carry those tones unreliably, so some units keep working, some drop the call partway, and some fail silently while the pendant still lights up as normal.

An alarm that connects over the mobile network is unaffected, because it uses its own SIM and never touches the phone line.

The government's Telecare National Action Plan commits that "no telecare user will be migrated to digital landline services without the communication provider, the customer or the telecare service provider confirming that the user has a compatible and functioning telecare solution in place". That protection depends on your phone company knowing an alarm is in the house, so tell them.

How do I check whether my alarm uses the phone line?

1. Trace the cables. A thin cable from the base unit into a telephone socket, or into the back of a router, means the alarm uses the fixed line.
2. Look for a SIM or aerial. A small SIM tray, a short aerial or a label mentioning 4G means the unit is mobile connected and unaffected.
3. Ask on a test call. Press the pendant, wait for the operator, and ask whether that specific unit is digital.

Our guide to whether an alarm needs WiFi or a landline covers the same ground.

What about alarms provided by City of Lincoln Council?

City of Lincoln Council runs LinCare, which it describes as providing "continuous, automatic and remote monitoring of real time emergencies designed to manage the risks associated with independent living". Published 2026 to 2027 charges are £237 a year for the Lifeline system and pendant, and £218.60 a year for Lifeline GO. The Wellbeing Lincs Response Service, which sends someone out rather than only calling for help, is charged separately. Enquiries go to 0300 303 4430 or lincare@lincoln.gov.uk.

Lincoln is one of the more forward councils on this. Its analogue to digital switchover page states that "LINCARE has already taken steps to protect its customers and has already upgraded its Monitoring Centre to receive Digital calls and has been installing and trialling the new Digital equipment in customers' homes since March 2019". Two honest caveats. First, that page still refers to the upgrade being completed by an earlier date than the national deadline of 31 January 2027, so treat it as a statement of direction rather than a current timetable. Second, and more importantly, it describes progress across the service, not a guarantee about the box in your own hallway. Ring LinCare and ask about your unit specifically.

Adult social care assessments for Lincoln residents sit with Lincolnshire County Council, which covers technology enabled care but has not published switchover guidance of its own.

What should Lincoln residents do now?

If the alarm came from LinCare, phone 0300 303 4430 and ask two questions: is my base unit digital, and if not, when is it due to be changed. Write down the answers.

If the alarm came from anywhere else, a private company, a housing association or a relative who bought it years ago, that supplier is responsible for confirming it will still work. Either way, tell whoever bills you for the phone line that there is a telecare alarm at the address, because that is what flags the property for extra care during migration.

Frequently asked questions

Where to start: Check the back of the base unit for a phone cable, ring LinCare on 0300 303 4430 if the alarm is a council one, and tell your phone provider about the alarm either way. See our digital switchover guide or pendant alarms for Lincoln. 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.