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Senior leaders from the Emergency Services Network (ESN) programme recently offered emergency services and suppliers a clearer picture of progress at our Q & A session webinar outlining delivery, testing, and the timescales for 2026 and beyond.
The session was chaired by Catherine Levin and featured Nigel Smith, Delivery and Deployment Director for the Emergency Services Mobile Communications Programme at the Home Office, Tomas Vanderick, Delivery Director for ESN at BT/EE, and Paul Peck, ESN User Services Lead at IBM. Together they emphasised the partnership approach they are taking to delivering the capability by 2029.
Nigel opened by focusing on a key principle: ESN must first replicate the functionality of Airwave before introducing additional capabilities.
“Airwave has been used for emergency communications for 25 years. It is tried, trusted, safe and secure, but it’s getting harder and harder to keep the system running.”
ESN will replace Airwave with a 4G-based service capable of voice, data, and eventually video, with a roadmap to 5G. Nigel stressed that new features can only follow once Airwave equivalency is achieved. “We’ve got to get to a point where we can replicate a safe and secure service.”
Over the past year, the programme has moved from mobilisation into delivery. National coverage has expanded, including rural and remote areas and proof-of-concept demonstrations for Mission Critical Services (MCX) are underway.
“We’re working through the leadership communities across each of the emergency services and our separate forums with the suppliers to try and keep people as engaged with and aware of what we’re doing as possible,” Nigel said.
Tomas and Paul both emphasised that delivery relies on continuous collaboration between suppliers, the Home Office, and users. He explained that the programme’s size and complexity require direct, open working relationships not just between organisations, but between delivery teams. For Tomas, clearly defined roles prevent problems and holdups occurring. “The distinct role that everyone plays is clear,” he said. “We can very quickly overcome some of those collaboration issues you typically see in big programmes.”
Looking ahead, the programme continues to target a full voice service ready by the end of Q1 2028, with Airwave shutdown scheduled for the end of 2029.
In the meantime, services can expect initial data capability later in 2026, early MCX testing with selected user groups, wider engagement from early 2027, and pilot activity before national transition.
ESN will use 4G-enabled devices rather than traditional radios, offering familiar capabilities such as handheld and vehicle-mounted devices, group and individual calling, emergency alerting, and control room integration. Additional features such as video and enhanced location data will be introduced after transition.
BT/EE has led extensive field testing, including on New Year’s Eve in London, with over 300 devices on congested networks. The New Year’s Eve test covered prioritisation, accessibility, and voice quality under load. Further large-scale testing is scheduled for 2026, including at Notting Hill Carnival, with increasing integration of devices, applications, and core network elements. Paul described the approach: “The earlier we identify problems, the quicker we can fix them, the less impactful will be in the risks of programme as we progress.”
As the transition approaches, the panel urged services to get involved now. Nigel advised, “Get engaged with the programme, ask questions, find out what’s going on.” Tomas encouraged services to focus on operational use rather than simple Airwave comparison. “If we all adopt the network, then it will deliver fantastic opportunities for emergency services in the future,” he said. Paul added, “Get excited, because we are going to deliver ESN so we can transition all the users and shut down airwaves safely.”
With delivery now visible, the ESN programme is moving forward, and services will increasingly need to engage with what this means for their own planning.
Catch up with the full webinar here.
Transport for London (TfL) and Boldyn Networks have rolled out network coverage on the Circle and District lines, a key enabler for the Emergency Services Network. Read more here.
