In December 2022, the Government announced a £1 million Community Automated External Defibrillators Fund to expand defibrillator access across the country. Julian has welcomed the news that expressions of interest are now being received, with organisations encouraged to apply for funding to place a defibrillator in community spaces such as town halls, community centres, local shops, post offices and local parks.
Survival rates for cardiac arrest outside of a hospital are lower than one in ten, making it one of the most common causes of death every year. The treatment and prevention of cardiovascular disease is therefore a priority for the Government.
Defibrillators can provide vital life-saving treatment, with survival rates increasing by over 40% if used within 3-5 minutes of a cardiac arrest.
In 2015, the Government provided £2 million to the British Heart Foundation to make defibrillators more widely available to the public and to increase the number of people trained in CPR. The 2019 NHS Long Term Plan then established a national network of community first responders and defibrillators that will help save up to 4,000 lives each year by 2028.
Last summer, the Government also announced that state schools across England will receive at least one defibrillator on site, with larger schools receiving more devices. Sport England have also made it a condition of all capital funding awards for grassroots sport venues to include defibrillator provision if it is not already given at a location.
As a result, there are now over 55,000 registered defibrillators in the UK, with this increasing by approximately 500 per week.
To maximise the impact of this fund, successful applicants will be asked to match or contribute to the funding they receive. Organisations can express their interest at the following link: https://forms.office.com/pages/responsepage.aspx?id=MIwnYaiRMUyMH-9N6Jc6HLfy1IJ_lPFFotCZIB4mEYlUQ1VUWU9ISjI4MjNTVzlPWFk1SDQ2SzhRSi4u&wdLOR=c5A64400B-53D5-4173-ADF4-7137DE343373
