Local residents are being urged to donate their old mobile phones to help people escaping domestic violence.
Collection boxes have been set up at various locations around Penrith, with phones and chargers able to be donated.
These will be donated to DV Safe Phone, a registered charity dedicated to providing a lifeline for those dealing with domestic violence.
The phones will be refurbished and distributed to government agencies and support services that gift them to victims.
Penrith Mayor Tricia Hitchen encouraged residents to donate a device as there are vulnerable, unsafe community members who need urgent access to support.
“There were 1,077 reported instances of domestic violence in the Penrith Local Government Area in 2022 alone which proves domestic and family violence does not discriminate and the issue is impacting our community,” Hitchen said.
“We all have a drawer at home filled with old technology – that unused phone might be what your friend, relative or neighbour needs to call emergency services or a support network when they plan to escape domestic violence.
“I am proud of our Council for continuing to be proactive in this space and I encourage everyone, from our staff to our many residents, to help save another by dropping off a phone at one of our collection points.”
DV Safe Phone CEO Ashton Wood said Penrith is one of the first councils in the state to be supporting the organisation’s work, which has seen more than 5,000 phones delivered to domestic violence victims in three years.
“We are proud to partner with Penrith City Council. Having organisations like them collect phones on our behalf is vital to the service we provide,” Wood said.
“We encourage everyone to drop their old phones into their office and help ensure that no call for help goes unheard. Your old phone could save a life of a victim of domestic violence here in Australia.”
To see where your nearest collection box is, visit penrith.city/dvsafephone.
To find out more about the organisation Council is supporting, go to dvsafephone.org.
