Heart defibrillator donated to Chilwell Memorial Hall and Institute by Hartshorne Group

A POPULAR community centre in Nottingham has installed a life saving heart defibrillator as part of a Healthy Heart Campaign.

The Chilwell Memorial Hall and Institute, which is celebrating its 100th anniversary next year, received the portable medical device courtesy of haulage sector company Hartshorne Group.

East Midlands Ambulance Service will now be hosting a training session for volunteers and other key personnel so that they can operate the defibrillator quickly and effectively should an emergency arise.

Chris Clift, a volunteer at the Memorial Hall, said: “We’re a busy community hub that is used by people of all ages and backgrounds, so it’s reassuring to know that we have a heart defibrillator. We’d like to thank everybody who’s helped to make this happen.

“In particular we are grateful to Hartshorne for donating this life-saving device and to councillors Richard Jackson and Eric Kerry who, through utilising the Notts County Council’s Divisional Fund, have covered the costs of installation and ongoing maintenance of the defibrillator guaranteeing many years of service to our community.”

Hartshorne Group, which supplies and services Volvo commercial vehicles, launched the Healthy Heart Campaign to fund defibrillators, which come with voice instructions and can be used to restart a person’s heart in an emergency.

James Cowen, Finance Director at Hartshorne said: “We are a local company and one of our delivery drivers, Peter Maloney, has a close family member who uses the Memorial Hall, so we know how important the centre is within the community.”

The defibrillator will be registered on a national database called The Circuit so that 999-callers can be directed to it in an emergency.

Ben Ryrie, Community Support Officer at East Midlands Ambulance Service, said: “It’s great to see everybody join together to benefit the community in this way. Defibrillators save lives and are very easy to use, so the more information we can give people in order for them to feel confident about using them the better.”

Hartshorne has so far installed defibrillators at eight schools across the region and also at all of the company’s eight major depots, including sites in Nottingham and Alfreton. It donates £1 towards defibrillators for every hour of physical exercise that staff record via an app. Around 30,000 people a year in the UK suffer a heart attack that occurs somewhere other than a hospital.

* East Midlands Ambulance Service says that other organisations and businesses that have defibrillators can register their device at www.thecircuit.uk

PHOTO: Back row L to R: Peter Maloney of Hartshorne, Martin Barker (Caretaker of the Memorial Hall) and Ben Ryrie of East Midlands Ambulance Service. Front row L to R: Maureen Ruston (Treasurer of the Memorial Hall) and Christine Ball (Trustee of the Memorial Hall) and James Cowen FD of Hartshorne Group.

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