0191

Last updated

0191
United Kingdom adm location map.svg
Red pog.svg
0191
United Kingdom area code for Newcastle upon Tyne/Tyneside/Durham/Sunderland
National calling0191
International calling+44 191
ConservationNo
Active since 16 April 1995
Previous code(s)091
Earlier code(s)0385, 0632, 0783, 0894
Number format0191 xxx xxxx
Coverage
Area served Chester-le-Street
Durham
Seaham
Peterlee
Sunderland
Newcastle upon Tyne and Tyneside
List of United Kingdom codes

0191 is the UK telephone dialling code used by Newcastle upon Tyne, Durham, Sunderland and other nearby areas in the north east of England. [1]

Contents

Areas covered

Numbering in the 0191 area is officially divided into three distinct areas, each with their own batches of local subscriber numbers:

Number rangeOfficial designation [2] Notes
0191 2xx xxxxTynesideMainly North Tyneside, Newcastle upon Tyne and parts of southern Northumberland that border northern Tyneside.
0191 3xx xxxx Durham Also Chester-le-Street
0191 4xx xxxxTynesideOriginally exclusive to South Tyneside, Washington, Gateshead.
0191 5xx xxxx Sunderland Also East Durham.
0191 6xx xxxxTynesidePrimarily VOIP, virtual operators and overflow from 2xx xxxx range for Newcastle city centre.
0191 7xx xxxxSunderlandExtra capacity assigned in 2010, following consultation. [3]
0191 8xx xxxxTynesideExtra capacity assigned in 2010, following consultation. [3]
0191 9xx xxxxDurhamExtra capacity assigned in 2010, following consultation. [3]

In practice, some of the distinction between these areas has been lost due to differing levels of demand in each area and the need to find sufficient blocks of numbers for the many competing telephone companies that now exist. In particular, the original distinction between north Tyneside (2xx xxxx) and south Tyneside (4xx xxxx) has been obscured as the former range reached full capacity and recent allocations north of the Tyne have made use of spare capacity in the 4xx xxxx range. Further anomalies include Durham prefixes such as (0191) 350 being used by Cable & Wireless in Newcastle city centre [4] and (0191) 275 being used by BT in South Shields, an area traditionally (0191) 4XX. [5] New connections with Talk Talk have the prefix 447 or 340 no matter where in the 0191 area they reside and all new Sky telephone lines have the prefix 659, 660, 670 or 711 within the 0191 area, regardless of location.

Local dialling omitting the area code and using only the seven digit subscriber number is possible throughout the area, regardless of location or service provider. [3]

2010 Numbering Consultation

The release of local numbers starting 7, 8 and 9 followed consultation by Ofcom, [3] [6] in which the regulator stated its plans to issue remaining unused numbers in the 0191 area code in a way that preserves three distinct geographical groupings. Ofcom's initial proposal included allocating the 7xx xxxx range to Tyneside and the 8xx xxxx range to Sunderland. These assignments were reversed following consultation feedback from individuals and BT. [7]

History of the code

The original 091 area code was introduced in 1982 and phased in over a period of approximately five years. It was the newest two-figure STD code since the STD system was introduced into the UK, prior to London being split into two STD codes (071 and 081). It was later changed to 0191 as a part of PhONEday. Although it had no letter mnemonic officially ascribed to the 9 (due to the code being introduced years after All Figure Dialling, which saw existing letter mnemonics being converted to their corresponding numbers), it was believed that the number was chosen because it could stand for the 'Y' in Tyneside or the 'W' in Wear, despite the code also being used in Durham, which previously used 0DU5 (0385). [8]

0632Became (091) 2 and (091) 4
0385Became (091) 3
0894Became (091) 4
0783Became (091) 5

The first area to be converted was Newcastle upon Tyne (0632) [9] and the change over took about 20 months starting in 1982. Newcastle City Centre five-digit numbers in 0632 all began with 2, so 18 months before the scheme started, their numbers were prefixed with 3; that would allow the number 2 to be utilised for the North Tyne numbering part of the scheme. The first exchanges to convert to 7-digit dialling were Blaydon, Birtley, and Washington. Their local 6-digit numbers already began with 4 and were situated south of the River Tyne; to alleviate misdialling and confusion they were the first localities to convert. The main problem was that Blaydon numbers already began with 44 so misdialling in that exchange was inevitable.

To prevent misdialling between (0632) 44XXXX and (091) 444 XXXX, a plan was devised to change all South Tyne numbers beginning with the digit 4 to 7 digits by inserting 1 between the first two digits, making them (091) 41X XXXX instead. No similar problems occurred in North Tyneside as number 2 was no longer in use, 5 was not in use in Sunderland, and 3 was never used in Durham. Local numbers were changed as follows: from Birtley 40 to 410, Blaydon 44 to 414 and Washington 46 to 416. At the same time, Ryton, the only exchange in the Newcastle area with 4-figure numbers, was prefixed with 413. Ryton was still utilising the old 089,422 code for Newcastle Ring until its conversion to 091. Ryton was never upgraded to 0632 prior to seven-digit dialling.

All other numbers were prefixed with 2 north of the River Tyne and 4 south of it. Sunderland followed with the prefix 5 after the Tyneside scheme was completed, and Durham, again shortly after, with 3. Unlike Tyneside, whose changeover occurred in stages, the entire Durham and the entire Sunderland changeover occurred simultaneously overnight.

Five-digit numbers in Sunderland were prefixed with 51 or 56; e.g., Sunderland (0783) [10] 72000 became (091) 567 2000, and (0783) 43077 became (091) 514 3077.

Five-digit numbers in Durham were prefixed with 38; e.g., Durham (0385) 64411 became (091) 386 4411.

Related Research Articles

A telephone numbering plan is a type of numbering scheme used in telecommunication to assign telephone numbers to subscriber telephones or other telephony endpoints. Telephone numbers are the addresses of participants in a telephone network, reachable by a system of destination code routing. Telephone numbering plans are defined in each of the administrative regions of the public switched telephone network (PSTN) and in private telephone networks.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Metropolitan Borough of Gateshead</span> Metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England

The Metropolitan Borough of Gateshead is a metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of Tyne and Wear, North East England. It includes Gateshead, Rowlands Gill, Whickham, Blaydon, Ryton, Felling, Birtley, Pelaw, Dunston and Low Fell. The borough forms part of the Tyneside conurbation, centred on Newcastle upon Tyne.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Telephone numbers in the United Kingdom</span>

In the United Kingdom, telephone numbers are administered by the Office of Communications (Ofcom). For this purpose, Ofcom established a telephone numbering plan, known as the National Telephone Numbering Plan, which is the system for assigning telephone numbers to subscriber stations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Telephone numbers in Australia</span>

The Australian telephone numbering plan governs the allocation of telephone numbers in Australia. It has changed many times, the most recent major reorganisation by the Australian Communications and Media Authority taking place between 1994 and 1998.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Telephone numbers in South Africa</span> South Africa telephone calling codes

South Africa switched to a closed numbering system effective 16 January 2007. At that time, it became mandatory to dial the full 10-digit telephone number, including the zero in the three-digit area code, for local calls. Area codes within the system are generally organized geographically. All telephone numbers are 9 digits long, except for certain Telkom special services. When dialed from another country, the "0" is omitted and replaced with the appropriate international access code and the country code +27.

The Big Number Change addressed various issues with the telephone dialling plan in the United Kingdom, during the late 1990s and early 2000s.

Widespread UK telephone code misconceptions, in particular brought on by the Big Number Change in 2000, have been reported by regulator Ofcom since publication of a report it commissioned in 2004.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">020</span> Dialling code for London in the United Kingdom

020 is the national dialling code for London in the United Kingdom. All subscriber numbers within the area code consist of eight digits and it has capacity for approaching 100 million telephone numbers. The code is used at 170 telephone exchanges in and around Greater London as part of the largest linked numbering scheme in the United Kingdom. In common with all other British area codes the initial '0' is a trunk prefix that is not required when dialling London from abroad.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Telephone numbers in Malaysia</span>

Telephone numbers in Malaysia are regulated by the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Former Australian dialling codes</span>

The format of telephone numbers in Australia has changed over time to allow for the expansion of the subscriber base as technology has improved.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">PhONEday</span> 1995 day in which UK telephones were renumbered

PhONEday was a change to telephone numbering in the United Kingdom on Sunday 16 April 1995. A shortage of unique telephone numbers in the old dialling system meant that it was becoming increasingly difficult in certain areas of the country to assign unique numbers to new subscribers. To counteract this, dialling codes starting with 0 were changed to start with 01. In Bristol, Leeds, Leicester, Nottingham and Sheffield, the existing area codes, which were 5 digits in length, were instead entirely replaced with new codes comprising 4 digits, to increase the amount of possible numbers by a factor of ten. The changes made possible the ability to provision new numbers in each of these five cities. It also had the effect of assigning all geographic landline telephone numbers into one range of numbers starting with 01, allowing for further changes to be made at the Big Number Change in 2000. A £16m advertising campaign, and an eight-month parallel period during which both old and new codes were active, preceded the change. PhONEday followed a change made in May 1990, when the old London area code 01 was released from use, permitting all United Kingdom geographic numbers to begin with this prefix. Originally planned in 1991 to take place in 1994, in 1992 the change was postponed until the Easter Sunday bank holiday in 1995.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Telephone numbers in Iceland</span>

Telephone numbers in Iceland are seven digits long and generally written in the form xxx xxxx or xxx-xxxx and the E.123 format specifies +354 xxx xxxx from abroad since the country code is +354.

National conventions for writing telephone numbers vary by country. The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) publishes a recommendation entitled Notation for national and international telephone numbers, e-mail addresses and Web addresses. Recommendation E.123 specifies the format of telephone numbers assigned to telephones and similar communication endpoints in national telephone numbering plans.

0114 is the national dialling code for Sheffield in the United Kingdom. The area it serves includes almost all of the City of Sheffield and some adjacent areas. When STD codes were first introduced, Sheffield was assigned the mnemonic 0SH2, later changing to the corresponding numbers upon the introduction of All-Figure Dialling in the area. Instead of the expected 01742 code, Sheffield's area code changed to the current 0114 code on 16 April 1995, along with 4 other cities in England, as part of PhONEday. All subscriber numbers within the area code consist of seven digits. The code is used at several telephone exchanges as part of a linked numbering scheme. In common with all other British area codes the initial '0' is a trunk prefix that is not required when dialling Sheffield from abroad.

Ranges for fictitious telephone numbers are common in most telephone numbering plans. One of the main reasons these ranges exist is to avoid accidentally using real phone numbers in movies and television programs because of viewers frequently calling the numbers used. In North America, the area served by the North American Numbering Plan (NANP) system of area codes, fictitious telephone numbers are usually of the form (XXX) 555-xxxx. The use of 555 numbers in fiction, however, led a desire to assign some of them in the real world, and some of them are no longer suitable for use in fiction. Other areas have different fictitious telephone numbers.

01708 is the national dialling code for Romford in the United Kingdom. The area it serves includes almost all of the London Borough of Havering and some adjacent areas. When STD codes were first introduced, Romford was assigned 0708 and 0402 was used for the rest of the current code area. After a sequence of changes in the early 1990s, culminating with PhONEday, the current 01708 code became active on 16 April 1995. All subscriber numbers within the area code consist of six digits. The code is used at eight telephone exchanges as part a linked numbering scheme. In common with all other British area codes the initial '0' is a trunk prefix that is not required when dialling Romford from abroad.

Telephone numbers in the United Kingdom have a flexible structure that reflects their historical demands, starting from many independent companies through a nationalised near-monopoly, to a system that supports many different services, including cellular phones, which were not envisaged when the system was first built. Numbers evolved in a piecemeal fashion, with numbers initially allocated on an exchange-by-exchange basis for calls connected by manual operators. Subscriber numbers reflected demand in each area, with single digit telephone numbers in very rural areas and longer numbers in cities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tyneside Passenger Transport Executive</span>

The Tyneside Passenger Transport Executive was the operations arm of the Tyneside Passenger Transport Authority, created by the Transport Act 1968. and came into operation on 1 January 1970.

The ceremonial county of Tyne and Wear has returned 12 MPs to the UK Parliament since 2010. It was created under the Local Government Act 1972, which came into effect on 1 April 1974, comprising the urban areas around the mouths of the Rivers Tyne and Wear, previously parts of the historic counties of Northumberland and Durham.

References

  1. 0191 numbers and the 0191 area code – UK Area Code Finder. Area-codes.org.uk (31 August 2010).
  2. Ofcom | Telephone area codes Archived 29 March 2014 at the Wayback Machine . Consumers.ofcom.org.uk.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 "Telephone Numbering: Proposals for modifications to the National Telephone Numbering Plan, General Condition 17 and the telephone number application forms within existing numbering policy" (PDF). Ofcom. p. 3. Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 January 2011.
  4. MTrec is a Manufacturing and Technical Recruitment agency based in Newcastle, North East of England. Mtrec.net.
  5. Asda South Shields Superstore – opening times & facilities. Storelocator.asda.com (27 April 2011).
  6. Because not all 0191s are alike | Phone Codes Archived 18 July 2011 at the Wayback Machine . Phonecodes.wordpress.com.
  7. "Modifications to the National Telephone Numbering Plan, General Condition 17, the Premium Rate Services Condition and the telephone number application forms within existing numbering policy and to facilitate the increase in VAT from January 2011" (PDF). Ofcom. 20 December 2010. Archived (PDF) from the original on 5 July 2021. Retrieved 7 July 2021.
  8. International Literary Market Place, R.R. Bowker Company, 1976, page 398
  9. The Church of England Year Book, Volume 97, General Synod, Church Information Office, 1981, pages 115-116
  10. International Shipping and Shipbuilding Directory, Richard Daykin, Ernest Benn Limited, 1977, page 626