We have been made aware that the UK government will be carrying out a national test of the UK Emergency Alerts system on Sunday 23rd April at 3pm.
A siren-like noise will sound from the phone with instructions to respond to. This will sound even if the phone is on silent. The test will go to everyone, regardless of whether the government have the phone number or not. https://www.gov.uk/alerts
Our concern is for people who may be living with an abusive partner, or in similar situations, in which they may have a hidden safety phone. This may expose the phone to the perpetrator and place a number of people at increased risk. Refuge have released a video on YouTube with instructions on how to turn these alerts off.