Defibs4Hartlepool: Charity backs campaign for life-saving equipment in schools

Middleton Grange Shopping Centre security staff Adam Goodwin, left, and Ray Hughes, right, with centre manager Mark Rycraft, with a defibrillator

Members of Hartlepool Round Table have held a meeting and agreed to get behind the Defibs4Hartlepool campaign.

James Black, chairman of Hartlepool Round Table, said: “The statistics surrounding cardiac arrest are shocking. I work in a school myself so I understand how having a defibrillator can provide some peace of mind to parents and teachers.

“Hartlepool Round Table is committed to supporting local charities, campaigns and individuals who need our help.”

Defibs4Hartlepool is already making a difference in town. Mr Black added: “It has already made an impact in providing defibrillators into two schools in Hartlepool and with four more schools pledging an interest we were delighted when the group invited us to get involved and help them in their quest to make Hartlepool a safer place to live.”

Mark Rycraft is the vice-chairman of Hartlepool Round Table and is a co-founder of Defibs4Hartlepool.

He said: “This initiative is at the core of what Hartlepool Round Table is all about and I’m delighted that our chairman has agreed to support the group and local communit- ies.

“The Hartlepool Mail has contributed significantly to raising awareness but now we come to the time where we need to start raising funds as well.

“Myself and three other colleagues work at Middleton Grange Shopping Centre and we are committed to making a difference. As a result any fundraising we undertake at the shopping centre will directly benefit defibs4hartlepool.”

For more details and to back the cause, visit http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/fund/defibs4hartlepool

As many as 270 children die in the UK each year ater having a sudden cardiac arrest at school. Mr Rycraft, who has helped to set up the group, believes the equipment could prove vital, and has urged schools in the area to buy an AED.

Mr Rycraft is also the manager at the Middleton Grange Shopping Centre. Shopping centre security staff Adam Goodwin, Ray Hughes and Paul Foster are backing the cause and have formed the project with Mr Rycraft.