‘Restart a Heart Day’, 16th October 2024, shines a light on the importance of knowing CPR and AED
The Golden Thread Alliance – a Multi Academy Trust with nine primary schools across Kent – is launching a basic lifesaving training programme (BLS) with not-for-profit organisation TOBE-Heartsafe.
Using ‘Restart a Heart Day’ to shine a light on the importance of BLS, TOBE plans to train all Year 5 and Year 6 pupils and teachers across the Trust in Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) and the use of an Automated External Defibrillator (AED).
A pilot programme took place in Summer this year, meaning that 645 pupils from Year 6 left school with the skills, knowledge, understanding and confidence in CPR and the safe use of an AED. Over the coming year, that programme is being extended to Year 5 pupils as well as Year 6 meaning over 1,200 children will have the knowledge of basic lifesaving training this Academic Year (24/25).
It’s an integral part of the TOBE-Heartsafe mission to provide BLS as well as managing Cardiac Screening to 14-35yr olds.
Lucia Amato, TOBE’s Cardiac Nurse confirms its importance:
“Survival rates can be as high as 60-70% in young people when resuscitation is started by bystanders but every minute that passes without chest compressions and defibrillation reduces their chance of survival by up to 10%. This training gives the participants the confidence and the ability to perform effective CPR.”
Garry Ratcliffe CEO of The Golden Thread Alliance confirmed:
“The training is very comprehensive and informative and there has been a lot of positive response from all the children and our staff which means they will most certainly retain the information. The nurses have created a lesson plan that is not only fun and interactive, so the children really get enthused about the subject, but it gives them an important life skill that they leave school with. 645 superheroes left our Golden Thread Academies last academic year with the knowledge and skills that might just help save a life.”
The lesson plan enables the learner to:
- be able to recognise an emergency and react appropriately when someone falls ill or has an accident.
- have a basic understanding of what may cause a person to become unresponsive.
- be able to make sure that the unresponsive person and themselves are safe whilst waiting for professional help to arrive.
- be able to help someone who is unresponsive and breathing, by keeping their airway open and putting them into the recovery position.
- be able to recognise when someone is unresponsive and not breathing and perform or explain to another person how to perform CPR.
- understand the importance of obtaining an AED if they are not alone.
Sam Richards, friend of The Golden Thread Alliance is a co-founder of TOBE-Heartsafe. Sam found her own son, 22 yr old Toby dead on his bedroom floor from an undiagnosed heart condition in 2019. At the time of death he was fitter and healthier than he’d ever been. His death was registered as SADS – Sudden Arrhythmic Death Syndrome.
That tragedy brought together a team of people and specialists who decided to form TOBE to raise awareness and expand cardiac screening and basic life support training services across the UK into local communities with its buy one, donate one model.