01708

01708
United Kingdom area code for Romford
01708
National calling	01708
International calling	+44 1708
Conservation	Yes^[1]
Active since	16 April 1995
Previous code(s)	0708
Number format	01708 xxxxxx
Coverage
Romford Upminster Ingrebourne Hornchurch South Ockendon Purfleet Rainham Stapleford
Area served	Havering Purfleet South Ockendon Stapleford
List of United Kingdom codes

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.

History

When STD codes were initially assigned, Romford was given the mnemonic code RO8 (corresponding to 708 on the rotary dial), with Hornchurch and the rest of the area using the HX2 (402) code. With the transition to all-figure dialling which ended the practice of representing STD codes with letters in 1966, and including the trunk prefix, these became 0708 and 0402. The Hornchurch code covered seven exchanges in a linked numbering scheme, with an additional digit for each exchange:

Dialling code^[2]	Exchange name
040 22	Upminster
040 23	Ingrebourne
040 24	Hornchurch
040 25	South Ockendon
040 26	Purfleet
040 27	Rainham
040 28	Stapleford

The two codes operated as a single group for charging purposes in which all calls were priced at local rate. Additionally (and as is usual) calls to and from the adjacent charge groups were charged as local.^{[notes 1]}

The area was adjacent to the London telephone area and formed part of the London Telecommunications Region set up in the 1930s. The Upminster exchange was the last in the London region to convert from manual service in 1970 and the first to use the TXK system.^[3] The Stapleford exchange was the last in the region to use the UAX 13 Strowger automatic exchange system. After being decommissioned in 1992 the exchange, including the original building, became a working exhibit at Avoncroft Museum of Historic Buildings.^[4]

In common with exchanges in areas adjacent to the London 01 area, local dialling codes were assigned. For example, Romford 5 digit numbers (which began with 2, 4, or 6)could be reached by dialling 70 (instead of 0708), Romford 6 digit numbers (which began with 75 and were served by Romford South exchange) could be reached by dialling 3 instead of 0708 and Hornchurch numbers (5 digit) could be reached by dialling 49 instead of 04024.

During the 1980s and early 1990s exchanges in the 0402 area gradually transitioned to 0708 and subscriber numbers were standardised at six digits. The 1979/80 code book shows South Ockendon as the first exchange to change code and subscriber numbers.^[2] By 1983 the South Ockendon change was shown to be complete and Purfleet numbers were in the process of being amended.^[5]

Exchange	Upminster	Ingrebourne	Hornchurch	Rainham	Stapleford	Romford	South Ockendon	Purfleet
Old numbering	(040 22) xxxxx	(040 23) xxxxx	(040 24) xxxxx	(040 27) xxxxx	(040 28) xxx	(0708) xxxxx	(040 25) xxxx	(040 26) xxxx
New numbering	0708 2xxxxx	0708 3xxxxx	0708 4xxxxx	0708 5xxxxx	0708 688xxx	0708 7xxxxx	0708 85xxxx	0708 86xxxx

After this was completed the code for the whole area changed on PhONEday in 1995 to 01708. The 0402 code was reused for mobile telephone numbers until it was abandoned again during the Big Number Change in 2000.

Coverage

The code serves almost the whole of the London Borough of Havering in Greater London^{[notes 2]} with exchanges at Romford, Hornchurch, Ingrebourne (in Harold Wood), Rainham and Upminster. There are three exchanges outside the borough in Essex at Purfleet, South Ockendon and Stapleford.

Code	Exchange	Residential premises	Business premises
LNHOR^[6]	Hornchurch	26,746	885
LNING^[7]	Ingrebourne	18,050	528
LNPFT^[8]	Purfleet	6,329	657
LNRAI^[9]	Rainham	13,727	524
LNROM^[10]	Romford	30,571	1,563
LNSFD^[11]	Stapleford	272	71
LNSOK^[12]	South Ockendon	8,004	183
LNUPM^[13]	Upminster	9,708	407

Number allocation

Under the National Telephone Numbering Plan the code operates with the following sub-ranges:

01708
0xxxxx 1xxxxx	national dialling only, not issued locally
2xxxxx 3xxxxx 4xxxxx 5xxxxx 6xxxxx 7xxxxx 8xxxxx 9xxxxx	local numbers

The area code is subject to number conservation and the regulator Ofcom restricts the size of number blocks that are allocated.^[14]

Notes

↑ Calls to and from numbers now in the 01268, 01277, 01322, 01375, 01474, 01689, 01959, 01992 and 020 codes were charged at local rate.
↑ The Hornchurch Marshes area is in the 020 area code

References

↑ "The National Telephone Numbering Plan" (PDF). Ofcom. 31 May 2012. Archived from the original (PDF) on 10 July 2012.
1 2 Telephone Dialling Codes (PDF). British Telecom. 1979–80.
↑ "Events in Telecommunications History: 1970". Retrieved 28 September 2012.
↑ "Unit Automatic Exchange (B1 UAX 13X )". Retrieved 30 September 2012.
↑ Telephone Dialling Codes (PDF). British Telecom. 1983.
↑ "Hornchurch Exchange". Retrieved 28 September 2012.
↑ "Ingrebourne Exchange". Retrieved 28 September 2012.
↑ "Purfleet Exchange". Retrieved 28 September 2012.
↑ "Rainham Exchange". Retrieved 28 September 2012.
↑ "Romford Exchange". Retrieved 28 September 2012.
↑ "Stapleford Exchange". Retrieved 28 September 2012.
↑ "South Ockendon Exchange". Retrieved 28 September 2012.
↑ "Upminster Exchange". Retrieved 28 September 2012.
↑ "Conserving geographic numbers – Statement". Ofcom. 8 April 2010. Archived from the original on 11 November 2010.

Telephone numbers in the United Kingdom

Number plan	List of dialling codes Non-geographic numbers

Number changes	All-figure dialling Area name changes Big Number Change Code misconceptions PhONEday

Special numbers	100 101 111 112 116000 116111 116123 118xxx 123 141 1471 150 155 1571 999

Geographic area codes	113 114 115 116 117 118 1200 1202 1204 1205 1206 1207 1208 1209 121 1223 1224 1225 1226 1227 1228 1229 1233 1234 1235 1236 1237 1239 1241 1242 1243 1244 1245 1246 1248 1249 1250 1252 1253 1254 1255 1256 1257 1258 1259 1260 1261 1262 1263 1264 1267 1268 1269 1270 1271 1273 1274 1275 1276 1277 1278 1279 1280 1282 1283 1284 1285 1286 1287 1288 1289 1290 1291 1292 1293 1294 1295 1296 1297 1298 1299 1300 1301 1302 1303 1304 1305 1306 1307 1308 1309 131 1320 1322 1323 1324 1325 1326 1327 1328 1329 1330 1332 1333 1334 1335 1337 1339 1340 1341 1342 1343 1344 1346 1347 1348 1349 1350 1352 1353 1354 1355 1356 1357 1358 1359 1360 1361 1362 1363 1364 1366 1367 1368 1369 1371 1372 1373 1375 1376 1377 1379 1380 1381 1382 1383 1384 1386 1387 13873 1388 1389 1392 1394 1395 1397 1398 1400 1403 1404 1405 1406 1407 1408 1409 141 1420 1422 1423 1424 1425 1427 1428 1429 1430 1431 1432 1433 1434 1435 1436 1437 1438 1439 1440 1442 1443 1444 1445 1446 1449 1450 1451 1452 1453 1454 1455 1456 1457 1458 1460 1461 1462 1463 1464 1465 1466 1467 1469 1470 1471 1472 1473 1474 1475 1476 1477 1478 1479 1480 1481 1482 1483 1484 1485 1487 1488 1489 1490 1491 1492 1493 1494 1495 1496 1497 1499 1501 1502 1503 1505 1506 1507 1508 1509 151 1520 1522 1524 15242 1525 1526 1527 1528 1529 1530 1531 1534 1535 1536 1538 1539 15394 15395 15396 1540 1542 1543 1544 1545 1546 1547 1548 1549 1550 1553 1554 1555 1556 1557 1558 1559 1560 1561 1562 1563 1564 1565 1566 1567 1568 1569 1570 1571 1572 1573 1575 1576 1577 1578 1579 1580 1581 1582 1583 1584 1586 1588 1590 1591 1592 1593 1594 1595 1597 1598 1599 1600 1603 1604 1606 1608 1609 161 1620 1621 1622 1623 1624 1625 1626 1628 1629 1630 1631 1633 1634 1635 1636 1637 1638 1639 1641 1642 1643 1644 1646 1647 1650 1651 1652 1653 1654 1655 1656 1659 1661 1663 1664 1665 1666 1667 1668 1669 1670 1671 1672 1673 1674 1675 1676 1677 1678 1680 1681 1683 1684 1685 1686 1687 1688 1689 1690 1691 1692 1694 1695 1697 16973 16974 16977 1698 1700 1702 1704 1706 1707 1708 1709 1720 1721 1722 1723 1724 1725 1726 1727 1728 1729 1730 1732 1733 1736 1737 1738 1740 1743 1744 1745 1746 1747 1748 1749 1750 1751 1752 1753 1754 1756 1757 1758 1759 1760 1761 1763 1764 1765 1766 1767 1768 17683 17684 17687 1769 1770 1771 1772 1773 1775 1776 1777 1778 1779 1780 1782 1784 1785 1786 1787 1788 1789 1790 1792 1793 1794 1795 1796 1797 1798 1799 1803 1805 1806 1807 1808 1809 1821 1822 1823 1824 1825 1827 1828 1829 1830 1832 1833 1834 1835 1837 1838 1840 1841 1842 1843 1844 1845 1847 1848 1851 1852 1854 1855 1856 1857 1858 1859 1862 1863 1864 1865 1866 1869 1870 1871 1872 1873 1874 1875 1876 1877 1878 1879 1880 1882 1883 1884 1885 1886 1887 1888 1889 1890 1892 1895 1896 1899 1900 1902 1903 1904 1905 1908 1909 191 1920 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1928 1929 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1937 1938 1939 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 19467 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1957 1959 1962 1963 1964 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1974 1975 1977 1978 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1992 1993 1994 1995 1997 20 23 24 28 29

Non-geographic prefixes charged at geographic rate	300 302 303 306 330 331 332 333 342 343 344 345 370 371 372 373

Personal, pager, VoIP and corporate numbering	55 56 70 76

Mobile telephone prefixes	71xx 73xx 74xx 75xx 7624 77xx 78xx 79xx

Freephone prefixes	500 800 808

Non-geographic prefixes with revenue share (NTS)	842 843 844 845 870 871 872 873

Premium Rate Services (PRS)	900 901 902 903 904 905 906 907 911 912 913

Adult services (SES)	908 909 982 983 984 989

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