What is the Emergency Services Network (ESN)?

March 31, 2021

Police car on call

What does the ESN do?

The Emergency Services Network (ESN) will replace the existing Airwave Tetra service that the UK’s emergency services are currently using. It will provide a critical communication solution to not only Police, Fire, and Ambulance but also include agencies such as Local Authorities and Utilities.

Why is the ESN being updated?

Whilst the primary driver for this “upgrade” is the requirement for the shared use of data and imagery in addition to resilient communication. Cost also played a large part with the current Airwave network costing more than £1M per day. ESN is also known as ESMCP (Emergency Services Mobile Communications Programme).

It has been being developed for over 6 years. With EE providing the infrastructure and Motorola the software. In vehicle devices are also now available as we get closer to deployment with over 55,000 vehicles involved and 300,000 hand-held users.

How will the ESN work?

This solution will run across the 4G EE network and will take priority over other users. It will allow the emergency services to share data over a single platform. This will not only transform the way they work but also allow for much greater integration and efficiencies between the various departments and external agencies.

Airwave has been in place for over 20 years and has proved a reliable and resilient service over the years, but it is time for a change!


If you represent an emergency services fleet and would like to find out how RS Connect has helped services across the country, please get in touch with us using the form below.

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