Agenda item

The Chamberlain to be heard.

The Committee heard a verbal update from the Chamberlain regarding a Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) update.

The Committee heard that BT had announced that it would be ceasing copper connections in 2025. There were 8,500 locations across 120 sites that needed to be investigated across the Corporation and City of London Police. These included those that required PSTN’s as part of an emergency, such as barriers, lifts, and fire alarms. This was a widespread issue across London. The next steps were for engineers to visit the potential affected sites to determine an upgrade pathway or other mitigations, which would then influence timelines, costs, and discussions on if the connection was required in the future. Officers had met with BT and other vendors to discuss initial identification. It was aimed that discovery work would be completed by June 2024.

Following the verbal update, the Committee asked questions. Following a query on the cost of the work, the Committee heard it was a significant cost across London, but that only an indicative cost could be provided until it was known where the changes would be required. It was considered a corporate risk. The Committee heard that PSTN’s were used frequently within Adult Social Care, but that these would not be switched off in the current timetable.

The Committee heard that officers were confident that the locations of the connections could be identified, but until an engineer could verify what work would be required, there were a lot of uncertainties, which was reflected in the budget being indicative.