Methods and apparatus provide paging control to a femto radio base station (28.sub.fj) of a radio access network (24). Paging to a femto radio base station (28.sub.fj) is controlled by maintaining a paging control database (46) of allowed user equipment units for which paging is permitted in a cell of a femto radio base station (28.sub.fj). The paging control database (46) is used to determine if a paging message for a target user equipment unit is to be forwarded to the femto radio base station. The database (46) thus serves to redefine the effective paging area by preferably including in the effective paging area only those femto radio base station for which the target user equipment unit is listed as a paging-allowed user equipment unit.