Sunderland Coral and Ladbrokes staff are proud to have raised over £6,000 for the British Heart Foundation (BHF) following a week of fundraising activities which will be used to help fund the charity’s ‘Nation of Lifesavers’ campaign running in secondary schools across the country. Through a range of in-store events and charity football days, the team decided to fundraise for the BHF to show their support for colleague, Jill Rich, who in July 2017 survived an out of hospital cardiac arrest at work.
A staggering 1,700 people from the North East suffer an out of hospital cardiac arrest every year, and less than 1 in 15 currently survive. Nationally, the survival rate is 1 in 10. A cardiac arrest happens when the heart’s normal beating rhythm is disrupted; causing the victim to fall unconscious requiring immediate CPR to survive.
Fortunately for Jill, the quick- thinking actions of a customer who performed CPR until the emergency services arrived helped to save her life. Shocked by the incident, this left colleagues wanting to show their support and do something positive to help protect future lives. The monies raised from the team’s fundraising week will help fund the BHF lifesaving CPR training kits in secondary schools as part of their ‘Nation of Lifesavers’ campaign; established to teach people across the UK what to do in an emergency and consequently improve survival rates across the country.
Ashleigh Canning, Coral and Ladbrokes manager, said,
“We have had an amazing week of fundraising for the BHF and are thrilled to present a cheque for £6,000 which will fund their lifesaving work. Our original target was £3,500 so to hand over a cheque this size is amazing! The staff really got behind the campaign to support both Jill and this great cause and we’re really happy with the result”.
Nikki Bell, Tyne and Wear BHF Fundraising Manager, said,
“Working with Coral and Ladbrokes staff during their fundraising has been phenomenal and it’s brilliant to see them backing such an important campaign. In the North East less than 1 in 15 people will survive an out of hospital cardiac arrest because people lack the skills or confidence to act. Our ‘Nation of Lifesavers’ campaign was created to teach everyone CPR and will have a huge impact on these figures. Thank you to the Sunderland colleagues and Coral and Ladbrokes for their generosity – it will make a huge difference”.
For more information on the Nation of Lifesavers campaign and to help fund lifesaving CPR training kits for secondary schools in the region contact Nikki Bell at belln@bhf.org.uk or call 07702 726 450 to find out more.