Police are urging everyone to know two numbers that can get them out of danger without saying a word. Last month, Cambridgeshire Police alone had 40 silent 999 calls where they were needed to attend urgently.

However many people do not realise that just saying nothing when you dial 999 will not automatically get you the help you might need. Instead there is a two digit number you should dial when prompted that will mean help will be on its way.

Posting on Cambridgeshire Constabulary said: "You know the feeling...you get home after a long day, close your door, turn the key - you're safe. However, home isn't a safe space for everyone. Behind closed doors, things can be be very different.

READ MORE:

READ MORE:

"We had 40 silent 999 calls in May where we were needed at the scene immediately - that is more than one every single day. A lot of these calls were from people suffering domestic abuse, who couldn't say much but urgently needed our help to escape a desperate situation or confide in officers what had happened to them."

It added: "Do you know? Pressing 55 after calling 999 lets police operators know that you need help but are in a situation where you can't talk. Tapping in 55 lets the 999 operator know your call is genuine, and they will try to track your location.

"If you can't speak, listen carefully to the questions and instructions from our demand hub call agents so they can assess your call and arrange help." It adds via the force website.

The call comes after a previous campaign by the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) which urged people to be aware of the Silent Solution system. Figures from the time showed around 20,000 silent 999 calls (where no response is obtained to questions) are made a day nationwide.

Of those, around 5,000 are transferred to the Silent Solution system because doubt whether the call is genuine exists. The 55 instruction is detected around 50 times a day (1 per cent of all silent calls put through to the system).

It advised: "The Silent Solution system enables a 999 mobile caller who is too scared to make a noise, or speak, to press 55 when prompted – to inform police they are in a genuine emergency.

"The system is well-established in the UK but is only effective if the public know and understand how it works. It could, in extreme situations, potentially save a life."

It warned at the time: "It is not true that police will automatically attend if you make a silent 999 call. Callers need to listen and respond to questions and instructions, including by coughing or tapping the handset if possible, or if using a mobile phone, once prompted by the automated Silent Solution system, pressing 55.

"The system filters out thousands of accidental or hoax silent 999 calls made daily. Around 50 emergency calls from mobiles a day are transferred by a BT operator to police forces in the UK as a result of someone having pressed 55 when prompted, enabling the police to carry out urgent enquiries to respond."

Then IOPC Regional Director Catrin Evans said: “It is always best to actually speak to a police call handler if you can, even if by whispering, but if you are putting yourself or someone else in danger by making a sound, there is something you can do. Make yourself heard by coughing, tapping the handset or once prompted by the automated system, by pressing 55."