Multi-Extension 8×8 Setup For Age UK Plymouth

For a charity supporting older people across the entire local community, reliable and straightforward communication is essential. This was certainly the case when Age UK Plymouth approached us for a new phone system, requiring a solution that could bring together staff working across different locations with minimal downtime and intuitive functionality.

Having not worked with Age UK before, we took the time to understand how the local independent charity operates. We then delivered a new 8×8 cloud phone system to bring the different working environments together and offer features that would help the charity better communicate with those who need it most. A highly hands-on installation and extensive user training made sure the team felt confident using these features from day one. 

About Age UK Plymouth

Age UK Plymouth is a local independent charity that works to improve the lives of older people across the city and surrounding areas. With over a third of the city’s population aged 50 and over, the work the charity does has a huge impact and spans support groups, day centres and community events.

Because Age UK Plymouth offers a wide range of services, its staff and phone system users are spread across the city. With its main centre in Mount Gould, a satellite centre in Plymstock, and staff working from home, the working environment is varied and a flexible approach to communication is necessary. 

The Challenge

Age UK Plymouth turned to the Agile Comms team because they needed to replace the existing phone system with something that better reflected the way teams were working and the services they were providing. Staff needed to be able to communicate seamlessly between the Mount Gould and Plymstock centres, while home workers also needed to remain connected to the wider team.

For a charity working directly with people in the local community, reliability was particularly important. The new system needed to provide a consistent and professional way for calls to be handled, while remaining straightforward enough for staff with different levels of technical experience to use confidently.

Keeping the implementation of the new phone system as smooth and straightforward as possible was also a priority, and Age UK Plymouth needed to benefit from the support of an experienced communications provider rather than be left in the dark to navigate the installation and new technology alone.

The Solution

After understanding the charity’s clear requirements, our team proposed and implemented a 19-extension 8×8 phone system. 

As a cloud-based phone system, 8×8 was the perfect choice for Age UK Plymouth as it gave staff greater flexibility in how and where they handle calls. Calls can also be easily forwarded to the appropriate person, ensuring both callers and colleagues can reach the right member of the team without unnecessary transfers or delays. Staff can also use the intuitive 8×8 mobile app to stay connected when working away from their desk or main centre.

We took a particularly hands-on approach to this phone system installation, providing multiple user training sessions to help the team understand the new cloud phone system and feel comfortable using its features. This practical approach gave staff the opportunity to ask questions and raise any concerns during the implementation, rather than being left to work things out for themselves.

The Results

Age UK Plymouth is now utilising the full benefits of a flexible 19-extension 8×8 phone system that is better suited to its modern working environment. Wherever they are based, staff are handling calls more easily through one joined-up system and are able to make full use of features such as call forwarding, voicemail and call recording.

The combination of a carefully configured system, hands-on installation and extensive user training has also given the team greater confidence in using their communications setup, empowering them to continue to do great work across the city. They also benefit from knowing the phone system will work without a hiccup, due to 8×8’s 99.999% uptime guarantee.

As a local charity with a hugely important purpose, we are delighted to have supported Age UK Plymouth with a phone system that can adapt to the way its team works and support new initiatives as they evolve.

Whether you are a charity looking for a better way to communicate or a hybrid organisation and know you can be handling calls more effectively, we’d be delighted to talk through how we could help you too. Please get in touch today to have a chat with the Agile Comms team and learn more about our phone systems.