Every school in Renfrewshire will have soon have access to a life-saving defibrillator as work begins to fit publicly accessible devices at all 50 primary schools.
The emergency resuscitation devices are already available at all secondary and additional support needs (ASN) schools across Renfrewshire but will be relocated if they are currently within the building to ensure 24-7 community access to the life-saving equipment
Each defibrillator includes simple-to-follow instructions on how to use them in the event of an emergency and the device locations are registered with the national network to help the emergency services when responding to 999 calls.
Kirklandneuk Primary School parents Rachael Cosgrove and Michael Campbell led the charge to have the defibrillator installed at the school after watching Christian Eriksen fall ill at the European Championships.
Michael said: “It’s a fantastic day for the school to be leading the way and driving change.
“We never expected this to happen so quickly, especially in the midst of a pandemic, so my thanks go to the Council for making this happen.
“Hopefully we never have to use these defibrillators, but it is reassuring for the staff and local community to know they are there and I’d urge local people to familiarise themselves with the defibrillator so they know how and when to use it.
“It really could be the difference between life and death.”
The new defibrillators are in addition to those already in place in Council buildings, town halls and local leisure facilities throughout Renfrewshire.
Councillor John Shaw, Convener of Renfrewshire Council’s Finance, Resources and Customer Services Policy Board, said: “The importance of these devices cannot be understated as they can be crucial in saving someone’s life.
“While we hope it is never required, this significant investment will ensure that children and staff at our schools will have direct access to this equipment should they need it – as will the local community as we are ensuring they are all publicly accessible.
“I’m delighted to have been able to take this ask from Kirklandneuk parents and expand it to all our schools across Renfrewshire.”
Work is underway initially in Renfrew to install the devices in each school by the end of the year and all other primary schools will see their device installed in early 2022.
Education and Children’s Services Convener Councillor Jim Paterson added: “It’s great to see work begin on installing these life-saving devices at all our schools as we know how important they can be in an emergency.
“It’s fantastic that the local community will have close access to a defibrillator and I’m looking forward to the work being completed early next year.” For more information on defibrillators, visit www.bhf.org