In reply to a post by broadbandjockey:

So, in other words, unless Ofcom mandate that all ISPs provide this facility (which to me looks highly unlikely ?) you're stuffed, ...

I raised this issue with Ofcom, emphasising that the situation I am in is anti-competitive, as the ceasing of my broadband for a period of weeks is a strong hindrance to me being able freely to choose my phone provider. I received a full and prompt reply, which included the following:

"We acknowledge that at present, this is not an ideal situation as we encourage consumers to consider switching to benefit from better deals or services. Our aim is to increase the availability of fibre for everybody and we are working towards eradicating situations such as this."

No specifics of course, but maybe, just maybe, there is some hope of Ofcom intervention particularly when the PSTN switch-off looms large.

Well done .

Maybe I'll email them about the same thing, see if they consider the amount of contact about the same issue to decide the importance of regulation in certain areas.

In reply to a post by Thaumaturge:

But if I migrate the number to VoIP, that will cease the broadband service too. My ISP says the standard time to restore it would be 14 days. It might be less, but they couldn't guarantee it. It might be longer if things don't go smoothly. I also understand that if there's a waiting list for FTTC slots in my cab - I don't know whether there is, how can I find out? - I might not be able to get a new FTTC connection at all.

In the traditional sense, yes this will happen.

If you're moving the data part over to a SoGEA service, you can port the number to VoIP. Openreach have a few processes for this (if the SoGEA and port are going to the same provider, if they're going to different providers and the same but with non-BT originated numbers).

The original route of renumbering with an export still works too but has additional cost implications and you'll still retain a copper voice line (meaning a change to SoGEA (ignoring FTTP for now) will have to happen at some point).

If SoGEA is an option for you, speak with your provider and they may be able to give some guidance on the process.

Matt