HAMPSHIRE County Council will be replacing its 0800 telephone numbers with new 0300 numbers next month as part of improvements to the way residents can access its services.

Customers calling the council on its old 0845 number will be advised of the change and encouraged to use the new 0300 number as a cheaper option for contacting the county council from February 2.

Calls to 0300 numbers are included in call packages.

Over the next three years, further improvements to customer access are expected at the county council, as part of the organisation’s new digital strategy, which was recently awarded £3.1million by the Government. 

As well as the county council’s call centre, more customers are choosing to contact the council on its website where they can report problems such as potholes, pay bills and look at information on all of the council’s services.

Councillor Roy Perry, leader of Hampshire County Council, said: “The county council’s Hampshire-based call centre takes more than half-a-million calls each year.

“Most queries are answered at the first point of contact, and those that are more complex are transferred or directed to someone best-placed to assist.

“The county council is committed to making it as easy as possible for residents to get the information they need, and reducing the cost of calls to our services is part of that commitment.”

A full list of the new numbers will be available on the county council’s ‘contact us’ section of the website - www3.hants.gov.uk/contactus - from February 2.