Making a call from a telephone

Starting a call

To start a call, dial 18002 then the full phone number of the person you want to call, including the area code (and international country code if you're calling outside the UK).

If the person you're calling picks up using a textphone, you will hear a recorded Text Relay greeting message while you wait for a relay assistant to join the call.

If the person you're calling picks up using a telephone, the call will be treated like a standard telephone call. However, if at any point the person you’re calling switches to a textphone, you will hear a recorded Text Relay greeting message while you wait for a relay assistant to join the call.

During the call

Each person takes their turn to speak or type. When you've finished, say 'go ahead'.

Remember to allow enough time for the relay assistant to type your side of the conversation to the person you're calling and read their response back to you.

Please note: The other person might use their own voice to speak to you, but they cannot hear your reply. If they do speak directly, don't try to reply until they have said "go ahead".

Ending a call

When you want to end your call, just say 'bye' or 'goodbye' and wait for their reply – this gives them the chance to say something else, in case they don't want to end the call.

Receiveng a call

If you receive a call from Text Relay, you will hear the following recorded message:

A relay assistant will then be connected to the call. Once connected, you will hear the relay assistant say:

If you have not used Text Relay before, you can ask the relay assistant to explain how it works.