Drugs charity upgrades to VoIP communications

Prince Edward, the Earl of Wessex, has opened the VoIP telecoms system which has been installed at drug information charity Drugsline.

The system is planned to aid the charity in its work providing support to drugs users and their families by cutting call costs and provide more flexibility which may lead to an increase in the number of calls they are able to deal with.

Prince Edward opened Drugsline's new extension to its premises which provided the impetus for the switch to a hosted VoIP service, according to Drugsline.

The charity's operations director Christina Ball said: "We had an antiquated BT system that really needed to be updated. We thought we could take advantage of our move and install a telephone solution that was not just cost effective, but one that would give us a greater degree of flexibility, help us answer more calls and service our callers that much better."

At the opening ceremony for the new building, Prince Edward wished the charity the best of luck in their work, saying: " Thank you to everyone for allowing me to hear first hand what you have been doing at Drugsline and sharing with me your ambitious plan for the future."

Drugsline has mimicked the trend among some charities to switch over to VoIP in order to benefit from the cost savings and better efficiency, which can be ploughed back into the charity work where they can have much more positive effects.