Emergency desktop and SMS alert test: Thursday, 22 October at 11am

08 Oct 2026

On Thursday, 22 October at 11.00am, we'll be running a full test of the University's emergency alert systems. A notification may appear on University-managed devices and you might get a text, but you don't need to do anything.

We're continuing to strengthen our emergency communications through SafeZone, the University's campus safety and emergency application.

Over the past year, we've added new SafeZone features so that colleagues and students can be told quickly about any serious incidents that may affect our community:

• SafeZone Desktop Takeover, which allow us to send important safety notifications to be displayed directly on University-managed computers.
• SafeZone Mass Notifications, which enable us to send urgent alerts to colleagues and students via text message and other communication channels.

These tools provide the University with the ability to communicate rapidly and consistently during incidents, helping to keep our community informed and support effective decision-making during emergencies. 

What's happening on 22 October

To ensure the systems work properly, and that everyone knows what to expect, we'll be carrying out a full test of both the SafeZone Desktop Takeover and SafeZone Mass Notifications functions on Thursday, 22 October at 11.00am.

During the test:

• If you're using a University-managed device, a SafeZone alert may appear on your screen.
• You may get a text message confirming that it's a test of the University's emergency notification system.
• You don't need to do anything.

This test is part of our ongoing work to keep emergency communications reliable and effective, so that if a real incident happens, messages reach the people who need them.

Tell us how it went

If you have comments, or if you have any problems receiving the test alert, please email the Resilience Team at resilienceteam@manchester.ac.uk.

Thank you for helping us keep our campus safe and resilient.