01527 is the national dialling code for Redditch in the United Kingdom. Before PhONEday the area code was 0527. The mnemonic for 0527 corresponds with LA 7 where LA could have been taken from the letters L and A in Lapworth, a small village[1] in Warwickshire close to Redditch but not served by the 0527 dialling code. The original dialling code for Redditch was 0739, with the mnemonic RE 9 where RE are taken from the letters R and E in Redditch.

01527
01527 is located in the United Kingdom
01527
01527
United Kingdom area code for Redditch
National calling01527
International calling+44 1527
ConservationNo
Active since16 April 1995
Previous code(s)0527
Earlier code(s)0739
Number format01527 xxxxxx, 01527 6xxxx
Coverage
Area servedAstwood Bank
Bromsgrove
Catshill
Dodford
Hanbury
Lickey End
Redditch
Studley
Wychbold
List of United Kingdom codes

In common with all other British area codes the initial '0' is a trunk prefix that is not required when dialling from abroad.

Redditch is one of a small number of dialling codes which still retains 5 figure telephone numbers. 01527 60000 to 69999 are located on Redditch (Old Town) telephone exchange. They are the successors to 07392 60000 to 69999, and prior to STD the original 4 figure numbers on the manual telephone exchange which served Redditch until the early 1960s.[2]

Coverage

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The dialling code contains eight telephone exchanges which serve the towns of Redditch and Bromsgrove in Worcestershire, several villages in Worcestershire on the outskirts of these two towns, and the village of Studley in Warwickshire.

Code Exchange Local Authority
WMAST Astwood Bank Redditch
WMBPZ Bromsgrove Bromsgrove
WMHAN Hanbury Wychavon
WMHX Headless Cross Redditch
WMIPS Ipsley Redditch
WMRJ Redditch (Old Town) Redditch
WMSTD Studley Stratford-on-Avon
WMWYC Wychbold Wychavon

Settlements served by the dialling code include: Astwood Bank, Bromsgrove, Catshill, Dodford, Hanbury, Lickey End, Redditch, Studley, Wychbold

History

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Redditch was a dependent charge group of Birmingham during the period when its STD code was 0739 as it did not have its own Group switching centre (GSC). The routing digits for 0739 in distant STD exchanges were the same as those for Birmingham Newhall exchange followed by 194.[3] Redditch telephone exchanges were not arranged in a linked numbering scheme, so 0739 was suffixed with a digit identifying the particular exchange.

Exchange name Original STD code[4] New STD code[5]
Redditch 07392 0527
Bromsgrove 07393 0527
Astwood Bank 07394 0527 89
Studley 07395 0527 85
Hanbury 07396 0527 84
Wychbold 07397 0527 86

The STD codes were changed some time in the early 1970s - possibly on the date that the Headless Cross GSC came into operation, replacing Birmingham Newhall. The new STD codes were unchanged in 1984.[6]

Calls from the Redditch charge group were charged at local rate to telephone exchanges in the following STD codes:[7]

STD code Location
021 Birmingham
0299 Bewdley
0384 Dudley
0386 Evesham
0527 Redditch
0562 Kidderminster
0564 Knowle
0789 Stratford-on-Avon
0905 Worcester

Former local dialling codes

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From Birmingham:[8][9]

Exchange name Dialling code 1958 Dialling code 1965 Dialling code 1968 Dialling code 1987
Redditch 4 fig. RE6 RE9 739 N/A
Redditch 5 fig. N/A RE 73 75
Redditch 6 fig. N/A N/A N/A 7
Bromsgrove 4 fig. BR3 BR3 273 N/A
Bromsgrove 5 fig. N/A N/A 26 26
Astwood Bank 3 fig. Via operator N/A N/A N/A
Astwood Bank 4 fig. N/A AS2 272 0527 89
Astwood Bank 6 fig. N/A N/A N/A 0527
Hanbury 3 fig. Via operator 0RE96 07396 0527 84
Studley 4 fig. ST4 ST4 785 0527 85
Studley 6 fig. N/A N/A N/A 0527
Wychbold 3 fig. Via operator 0RE97 07397 0527 86
Wychbold 6 fig. N/A N/A N/A 0527

Local dialling codes were not provided for telephone exchanges with 3 figure numbers. Calls to these exchanges were via the operator then later the full STD codes was used.

From Dudley:[10]

Exchange name Dialling code 1961 Dialling code 1985
Redditch 943 943
Bromsgrove 4/5 fig. 940 940
Bromsgrove 6 fig. N/A 943
Astwood Bank 94388 94389
Hanbury 94384 94384
Studley 4 fig. 94389 94385
Studley 6 fig. N/A 943
Wychbold 94386 94386

A direct link was provided between Dudley and Bromsgrove. Calls to other exchanges were routed via Redditch. The unpublished dialling code 94383 would also have worked for Bromsgrove in 1961 with the call routed via Redditch. 943 would also have worked for Bromsgrove 5 figure numbers in 1985 with the call routed via Redditch as the Bromsgrove exchange was now incorporated into the linked numbering scheme.

From Kidderminster:[11]

Exchange name Dialling code 1966 Dialling code 1967
Redditch 852 943
Bromsgrove 854 942
Astwood Bank 85288 94389
Hanbury 85284 94384
Studley 85280 94380
Wychbold 85286 94386

A direct link was provided between Kidderminster and Bromsgrove. Calls to other exchanges were routed via Redditch. The unpublished dialling codes 85283 and 94383 would also have worked for Bromsgrove in 1966 and 1967 respectively with the call routed via Redditch.

From Bewdley:[12]

Exchange name Dialling code 1967 Dialling code 1984
Redditch 9943 9943
Bromsgrove 9942 9942
Astwood Bank 994389 0527 89
Hanbury 994384 0527 84
Studley 994380 0527 85
Wychbold 994386 0527 86

Calls to Redditch exchanges were routed via Kidderminster. 9 was the local dialling code for Kidderminster from Bewdley. By 1984 the local dialling codes for satellite exchanges had been withdrawn from the code book and the full STD codes listed instead. The local dialling codes may still have worked. 994383 and 9943 would also have worked for Bromsgrove in 1967 and 1984 respectively with the call routed via Redditch.

From Evesham:[13][14]

Exchange name Dialling code 1963 Dialling code late 1960s
Redditch 96 96
Bromsgrove 9683 9683
Astwood Bank 9688 9689
Hanbury 9684 9684
Headless Cross N/A 9687
Ipsley N/A 9688
Studley 9689 9680
Wychbold 9686 9686

An undated dialling code card for Ashton-under-Hill from the late 1960s also includes local dialling codes for Headless Cross and Ipsley telephone exchanges.

From Pebworth:[15]

Exchange name Dialling code 1968
Redditch 99596
Bromsgrove 07393
Astwood Bank 07394
Hanbury 07396
Studley 07395
Wychbold 07397

Calls to Redditch were routed via Stratford-upon-Avon and Evesham. 9 was the local dialling code for Stratford-upon-Avon from Pebworth; 95 was the local dialling code for Evesham from Stratford-upon-Avon; and 96 was the local dialling code for Redditch from Evesham. The full STD codes are published for other exchanges but "chained" local dialling codes may have worked – such as 9959686 for Wychbold.

References

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  1. ^ "Lapworth - A Warwickshire village".
  2. ^ "Birmingham Local codes - March 1958 & July 1961" (PDF).
  3. ^ Haworth, Roger. "British Subscriber Trunk Dialling Codes".
  4. ^ "STD Codes Reverse List 1968" (PDF).
  5. ^ "Tunbridge Wells STD code book 1976" (PDF).
  6. ^ "Haddenham & Long Crendon STD code book 1984" (PDF).
  7. ^ "Redditch charge group".
  8. ^ "Birmingham Local codes - March 1958" (PDF).
  9. ^ "List of local dialling codes from Birmingham".
  10. ^ "Dudley dialling code card - April 1961 & Dudley telephone directory - 1985" (PDF).
  11. ^ "Kidderminster dialling code cards - 1966 & 1967" (PDF).
  12. ^ "Bewdley dialling code card - January 1967 & dialling instruction book - November 1984" (PDF).
  13. ^ "Deduced from a Bidford-on-Avon dialling code card – November 1963" (PDF).
  14. ^ "Deduced from an Ashton-under-Hill dialling code card – late 1960s" (PDF).
  15. ^ "Pebworth dialling code card - 1968" (PDF).