The idea
For every minute that a person in cardiac arrest goes without being successfully treated (by defibrillation), the chance of survival decreases by 7 to 10 percent. For the RH19 postcode the median response time for life-threatening 999 calls is 7½ minutes.
Two of the defibrillators will be installed outside our reception areas and will be registered with the ambulance service for community use whenever our gates are open. The other two will be located in the sports hall and PE office - for use by anyone using our sports facilities. The devices are fully automatic and no specific training is required to be able to use them.
Likewise, we believe that by training all of our young people to administer basic First Aid, should an emergency arise anywhere within the local area, our students will possess the necessary skills to keep someone alive until paramedics can take over.
Imberhorne School is at the heart of our local community. The hearts of our local community are in your hands.
What we'll deliver
- 2 defibrillators installed externally for community use
- 2 defibrillators installed internally for use by staff, students and hirers
- Send 12 staff on a 'train the trainer' First Aid course so they can deliver training to all students year-on-year
- Purchase a QualSafe First Aid training kit with CPR manikins, etc
Why it's a great idea
The British Heart Foundation and Resuscitation Council UK are campaigning for more defibrillators to be installed in public spaces,
Given the number of students and staff, people using our premises out of school hours, as well as neighbours of our school, we believe it is vital that we have defibrillators on site.
We hope never to have to use this equipment, but it would give peace of mind to all of us knowing that it is there, should it ever be required in an emergency.
With First Aid due to form part of the Sex, Relationships and Health curriculum from September 2020, training members of staff now builds resilience for the future, giving us an in-house team of qualified trainers. Students can receive First Aid training within personal development lessons to minimise disruption and it will be a great additional skill to have on their CVs.
Steps to get it done
- Installing the defibrillators
- Ordering the First Aid training kit
- Booking McCrudden Training
- Delivering 3-day First Aid at Work training
- First Aid training delivered to students
Imberhorne is a split-site secondary school in East Grinstead with over 1,570 students and more than 200 staff. At the heart of our community, both sites are surrounded by densely-populated housing estates and nearby industrial units. On top of this, 33 clubs lease our premises (bringing an average of over 500 additional people onto our sites every week in term time), catering for a range of ages, delivering sessions on everything from badminton to ballroom dancing.
