County council changes its phone numbers
Tuesday, 30th September 2014.
People wanting to contact Suffolk County Council by telephone will, from this week, need to use a different number and could save money.
The county council is changing all of its telephone numbers that are prefixed 0845 to 0345. The remaining seven digits of the telephone numbers will remain exactly the same. All Freephone numbers starting 0800 will also remain unchanged.
It includes the telephone numbers for people wanting to apply for a school place for their child, reporting a pothole or road defect and the Families Information Service.
Suffolk County Council handles around 200,000 calls per year via 0845 numbers.
Cllr Jenny Antill, Suffolk County Council’s cabinet member for resource management, said: “I am committed to making it as cheap as possible for customers to contact us.
“Calls to 0345 numbers from landlines and mobiles are included in free call packages. Therefore, for all those customers calling the council on these numbers, it will mean that they do not incur any additional costs.
“0845 numbers can be used to generate income – which the county council has never chosen to do. Some customers were, however, concerned by this even being an option. We have listened to these concerns and, as a result, we are making the change.
“With 0345 numbers being included in free call plans for mobiles and landlines, I hope that we will be putting a little bit of money back in the pockets of our customers.”
A call to a 0345 number costs no more than a geographical number (i.e. 01284, 01787 and 01473).
Existing 0845 numbers will not be switched off over night. There will be a period of time where the 0845 number, and its replacement 0345 number, will both be live.
This is to ensure people can still access the services they need while getting used to the new numbers. It will also mean the county council only replaces printed materials and liveries when current stocks run out.
Customers can also contact the county council, completely free of charge, via its website: www.suffolk.gov.uk
The county council is changing all of its telephone numbers that are prefixed 0845 to 0345. The remaining seven digits of the telephone numbers will remain exactly the same. All Freephone numbers starting 0800 will also remain unchanged.
It includes the telephone numbers for people wanting to apply for a school place for their child, reporting a pothole or road defect and the Families Information Service.
Suffolk County Council handles around 200,000 calls per year via 0845 numbers.
Cllr Jenny Antill, Suffolk County Council’s cabinet member for resource management, said: “I am committed to making it as cheap as possible for customers to contact us.
“Calls to 0345 numbers from landlines and mobiles are included in free call packages. Therefore, for all those customers calling the council on these numbers, it will mean that they do not incur any additional costs.
“0845 numbers can be used to generate income – which the county council has never chosen to do. Some customers were, however, concerned by this even being an option. We have listened to these concerns and, as a result, we are making the change.
“With 0345 numbers being included in free call plans for mobiles and landlines, I hope that we will be putting a little bit of money back in the pockets of our customers.”
A call to a 0345 number costs no more than a geographical number (i.e. 01284, 01787 and 01473).
Existing 0845 numbers will not be switched off over night. There will be a period of time where the 0845 number, and its replacement 0345 number, will both be live.
This is to ensure people can still access the services they need while getting used to the new numbers. It will also mean the county council only replaces printed materials and liveries when current stocks run out.
Customers can also contact the county council, completely free of charge, via its website: www.suffolk.gov.uk
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