Hampshire County Council has adopted 0300 numbers for contacting most of its services.
The main advantage (to us) of a 0300 number is the price.
Calls cost no more than 9 pence per minute (the same as what are now called “geographic numbers” but we used to call just “telephone numbers”. Does anyone else remember STD Codes, a-rate and b-rate, and different dialling codes for local numbers?”).
Old 0845 numbers and New 0300 numbers
The old 0845 numbers could cost up to 12 pence per minute. OK, 3 pence may not sound like a lot, but if you are left on hold for thirty minutes while someone sorts out your query, those 3 pence soon start to mount up.
Remember that these costs are for calling from a landline. “Calls from mobile phones may vary” as they say on the radio. That is a euphemistic way of saying “calls from mobile phones will be very very expensive” – so if you can, call from a landline.
Contact Hampshire County Council
For a full list of the numbers for different services of Hampshire County Council – and email addresses – see Contact Hampshire County Council page.
General Enquiries and Switchboard of Hampshire County Council is: 0300 555 1375.
And if you are confused by the plethora of dialling codes and call charges, this page about charges from gov.uk helps to explain what they all mean.
How much does it cost to call the 0300 number from a mobile?
Depends on the mobile phone operator and tariff. Between 8p and 40p, apparently (but probably closer to 40p).
Spot on Chippy, calls to 03 numbers can be pricey- particularly if you don’t have inclusive minutes 🙁 I called the DWP the other week thinking that it would be a free call only to find that I was paying 45ppm for an hour and a half!
0345 Mobile Costs | Chargeable | 0345 Numbers