Great Southern Family Violence Team thrilled to have received 80 donated phones for DV Safe Phone campaign

Less than two months after they kicked off a media campaign, officers in the Great Southern Family Violence Team have been inundated with donated mobile phones for victims of domestic violence.

First Class Constable Charlotte Coultate said she was amazed to see 80 phones in the box by the end of July, and was thrilled with the community’s support to the DV Safe Phone charity.

“We might have had four or five in our collection box before, but after the (newspaper) article we were just inundated,” she said.

“We were pretty amazed at how generous people have been.

“Some of the phones looked brand new.

“It is really great to see the community get behind such an awesome initiative.”

Albany police station serves as one of the collection points that people can drop their old or damaged phones, before they are sent to the DV Safe Phone charity, where they are wiped of data and fixed.

They are then sent back to the police or agencies who distribute the refurbished phones — alongside new charging cables and secure SIM cards — to survivors of domestic violence as a safe way to contact support agencies.

“We order them from DV Safe Phones, about 20 at a time, then pass them on to victims of family violence as a phone that is safe, because the new number means that people who they don’t want to contact them can’t,” First Class Constable Coultate said.

“Or, we get a lot of people whose phones have been smashed in a DV situation, so we can supply them with a new phone, that they need for simple things like internet banking or calling us when they need help.

“Anyone who doesn’t have any old phones at home, they accept cash donations that go towards fixing up the phones or paying the technicians.”

Phones can be donated at Albany police station and cash on the DV Safe Phones website.

Victims of domestic violence can view where to collect phones for their own use via the H.A.L.T map on the website.