0191
 0191
|
|
| United Kingdom area code for Tyneside/Durham/Sunderland | |
|---|---|
| National calling | 0191 |
| International calling | +44 191 |
| Conservation | No |
| Active since | 16 April 1995 |
| Previous code(s) | 091 |
| Earlier code(s) | 0385, 0632, 0783, 0894 |
| Number format | 0191 xxx xxxx |
| Coverage | |
| Area served |
Chester-le-Street Durham Easington Peterlee Sunderland Tyneside |
| List of United Kingdom codes | |
0191 is the UK telephone dialling code used by Newcastle, Durham, Sunderland and other nearby areas in the north east of England.
Numbering in the 0191 area is officially divided into three distinct areas, each with their own batches of local subscriber numbers:
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 and (0191) 275 being used by BT in South Shields, an area traditionally (0191) 4XX. 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 and 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.
The release of local numbers starting 7, 8 and 9 followed consultation by Ofcom, 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.
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).
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