The keys can be handed over and the fit-out almost finished while calls still route to the old reception and the new connection is only shown as planned.

This office move connectivity checklist starts with the questions that need one joined-up answer. What can actually be ordered at the new address? What happens to the main business number during the change? Will the Wi-Fi plan match the new layout? And what is the proportionate fallback if the preferred connection is not ready when required?

The objective is not to promise a move without problems. It is to expose important dependencies early enough for the business to make informed decisions, rather than discovering them when staff or customers are already relying on the new site.

If you are considering new premises, record the address, intended opening date, expected users, important applications and business numbers. Then use 1Connect’s free Business Connectivity Check for an initial postcode-based price and availability report. The one-page checklist at the end of this article sets out the complete brief.

Why the technology plan cannot be left until moving day

A lease date or fit-out schedule does not confirm that the right connectivity is available to order. Availability can differ by address, even between neighbouring premises. The 1Connect check is the practical first step for exploring business options at the postcode. For wider network context, Openreach provides an address-level fibre checker, while Ofcom’s broadband coverage checker provides predicted availability and speeds. Ofcom cautions that actual availability and speeds at a property may differ from those predictions.

Treat any availability result as a starting point. The full address, business requirement and intended date still need to be confirmed before an order or activation date can be agreed.

A number transfer can affect a broadband service linked to the same line. A router position agreed early in the fit-out may not suit the final floor plan. Call routing may also need to change while teams are split between sites. These are not separate finishing jobs. They are one premises requirement with decisions that affect each other.

Five checks before opening or relocating a business site

1. Check connectivity at the exact address

Begin with what the new site needs to support, not the fastest product name available.

List the activities that depend on the connection:

• cloud applications and hosted systems;
• video meetings and voice calls;
• large uploads or file transfers;
• payment or booking systems;
• access between sites;
• guest or customer connectivity;
• any operational service that cannot simply wait for the connection to recover.

Use the 1Connect checker to explore the postcode, then confirm what can actually be ordered at the exact address. Separate three different statements:

1. a service appears in a coverage prediction;
2. a network operator plans to build at the address;
3. a provider has confirmed that a suitable service can be ordered.

Those statements are not interchangeable. Openreach explains that its checker can show whether Full Fibre is available, coming soon or still being explored, and that build plans can change. The practical decision should therefore be based on current, address-specific order information and the needs of the business.

Speed is only part of that decision. Upload requirements, expected usage, repair commitments and the consequence of an interruption may be equally important. A small office using email and browser-based systems has a different requirement from a studio transferring large files or a multi-site operation relying on constant access to shared services.

2. Map the orders, dependencies and owners

An office move usually has a required date, but that date is not automatically a supplier commitment.

Create a simple dependency list showing:

• the required service;
• the address and part of the building it serves;
• the person responsible for the decision;
• the provider responsible for the order;
• any access, landlord or building information still needed;
• the date requested from the provider;
• the date actually confirmed;
• what other work depends on it.

This prevents an assumed date from being repeated across the project until everybody treats it as confirmed.

It also exposes gaps between the property, connectivity and internal network plans. For example, the preferred router location may not suit the final floor plan. A meeting room may need a wired connection that is missing from the fit-out. An access point may be shown on a drawing without confirming how it will connect to the network.

Use one view of the decisions that could otherwise be split across the landlord, fit-out team, connectivity provider and internal staff.

3. Protect the main business number and call route

A published business number is part of how customers, suppliers and prospects find you. Moving premises does not automatically move the number.

Ofcom describes number portability as the regulated facility that allows customers to keep their numbers when changing provider. Its landline switching guidance also warns that transferring a landline number can affect a broadband service linked to the same line in some circumstances.

Before requesting a change, record:

• the numbers customers currently use;
• the provider that manages each number;
• whether any number is linked to another service;
• which numbers need to remain unchanged;
• where calls should ring before, during and after the move;
• who will test inbound and outbound calling;
• what happens when the intended recipient is unavailable.

Hosted telephony can make call routing less dependent on one physical desk or building, but the required behaviour still needs to be agreed. Decide which team should receive each call, what happens outside normal hours and where calls should overflow when the first route is unavailable.

If the business expects to operate from both sites during a transition, test that arrangement as a separate operating state. Do not wait until the old site closes to discover that the temporary routing does not match how staff are actually working.

4. Plan the network and Wi-Fi for the new layout

An internet connection reaches the premises. The internal network still has to reach the people, devices and working areas that depend on it.

Use the final or latest available floor plan to identify:

• desks and fixed workstations;
• meeting and collaboration rooms;
• reception and customer-facing areas;
• operational spaces such as workshops, stock rooms or training rooms;
• devices that require a wired connection;
• expected staff and guest Wi-Fi use;
• any areas where poor coverage would interrupt an important task.

Avoid treating Wi-Fi as a collection of access points added wherever a signal appears weak. Coverage, capacity, interference, building materials, user density and device behaviour all affect the result. The requirement should describe where people need to work and what they need to do there.

The move is also a good point to decide how staff, guest and operational traffic should be handled, who will monitor network performance and who owns future changes. That creates a more useful brief than asking only how many access points to buy.

Base the proposed arrangement on the actual premises and confirmed scope, rather than assumptions carried over from the old site.

5. Agree a proportionate fallback

A fallback should be designed around the effect of a delay, not added as a vague promise that the business will “stay connected”.

Ask:

• Which roles must be able to work from the new site first?
• Which applications or customer services depend on the main connection?
• Can calls continue to reach the right people if the new site is not ready?
• Could part of the team work from the existing site or another agreed location for a limited period?
• Which temporary arrangements are suitable for the actual workload?
• Who decides when the fallback is used and when it ends?

Not every business needs the same level of resilience. The right response depends on what would stop, how long the workaround is practical and what has genuinely been configured and tested.

Keep the fallback separate from the preferred final design. A temporary option that supports a few essential users may not be suitable for the whole site, and it should not quietly become the permanent arrangement without review.

Planning connectivity and business numbers for new premises?
1Connect supplies business connectivity and leased lines alongside hosted telephony and business communications. Start with the exact address, required business use, important numbers and intended opening date, rather than a preselected product.

What to test before people rely on the new site

Testing should reflect the work people will perform, not only whether a device shows a connection.

Before the premises become operational, check:

• whether required wired and wireless areas can connect;
• whether important applications behave as expected;
• whether upload-heavy work performs acceptably;
• whether inbound calls reach the intended team;
• whether outbound calls present the expected business identity;
• whether overflow and out-of-hours routing behave as agreed;
• whether staff know the escalation route for a connection, phone or Wi-Fi problem;
• whether any agreed fallback can be activated without inventing the process on the day.

Record what was tested, when it was tested and who accepted the result. This turns a working assumption into an observed result with a documented escalation point.

How 1Connect fits into the plan

An office move crosses several parts of the technology underneath daily work. Connectivity brings the site online. Hosted telephony determines how calls reach people. The network and Wi-Fi connect the working areas and devices inside the premises.

1Connect can discuss those requirements across:

• business connectivity and leased lines;
• hosted telephony and business communications;
• managed networks and Wi-Fi.

The purpose is not to claim ownership of the whole relocation. It is to establish what the new premises need from those services, how they relate to one another and which options are appropriate for the confirmed address and business requirement.

The next useful step

Create a one-page requirements list before requesting options. Include:

• the exact address;
• the required opening or move date;
• expected staff and device numbers;
• important cloud, voice and operational applications;
• current business numbers and desired call behaviour;
• the latest floor plan;
• areas needing wired or wireless access;
• the operational consequence if the preferred connection is delayed;
• any date or service detail that still needs provider confirmation.

That document makes assumptions visible and gives each supplier a clearer requirement to answer.

If you are planning new or relocated premises, contact 1Connect to discuss the connectivity, hosted telephony and managed network requirements for the site.