Safeguarding vulnerable residents in the digital switchover
The shift from traditional ‘analogue’ telephone networks to digital affects businesses, public services and national infrastructure – but it is vulnerable and older individuals who face the greatest risk.
Telecare devices such as pendant alarms and fall detectors are still connected to analogue lines, meaning users could be left without life-saving support if migration is not properly managed.
Local authorities are on the frontline of this transition, ensuring residents and care providers are informed and supported. However, councils are facing major funding and resource constraints.
This is why a new report, from the Digital Communities All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG), has called on the Government to deliver ringfenced funding that enables combined authorities and future strategic authorities to improve the capacity and capability of dedicated digital teams to coordinate and deliver digital transformation and adoption.
Helen Morgan MP, Chair of the APPG, stressed the importance of government action: “The switch to digital is necessary, but no-one should be left without a lifeline. We need a coordinated effort to protect those most at risk.”
The APPG – for which the LGA acts as secretariat – has particularly drawn attention to proposals for a national telecare awareness campaign that is funded by BT and Virgin Media O2.
The campaign aims to raise awareness of the digital switchover and further identify vulnerable residents beyond data-sharing agreements.
Reflecting on the complexity of the digital switchover, the needs of residents and businesses, and the differing approaches and timelines of providers of communication services, the APPG’s report argues that buy-in and support from the voluntary and community sector and local government is critical to the campaign’s success.
The ‘Public Switched Telephone Network’ (PSTN) migration will see communications providers move customers from the existing analogue landline network to new, upgraded fibre services, of which more than half of lines have already been migrated.
There is unanimous agreement that the analogue network is rapidly deteriorating and that the new network will provide a future-proof and more reliable service.
The digital switchover is industry led, although not all service providers need to migrate customers because they do not have responsibility for any PSTN lines.
While timelines vary between them, communications providers are broadly working to migrate all customers by 2027.
The APPG’s report, ‘Care to Connect: PSTN Migration’, argues that the role of government needs to be clearly defined in digital transformation projects.
However, it acknowledges that ministers in the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology have become gradually more involved in the PSTN switchover with interventions to monitor management of the switchover and to put additional safeguards in place for residents
The report sets out several other recommendations to mitigate risks and ensure a smooth transition, including on:
- data-sharing agreements between communication providers and local authorities and housing associations
- the proposed national telecare campaign
- power back-up solutions in response to outages
- the ‘sunsetting’ of 2G and 3G networks
- telecare sector standards.
The APPG has committed to working with government, industry, and local authorities to ensure no-one is left behind in this transition.
With time running out before the full switch-off, urgent coordination is needed to safeguard those most at risk.