COMMUNITY volunteers have been urged to come forward to help support an emergency response scheme in rural areas of Malvern.
Local representatives have teamed up with HeartStart Malvern and the West Midlands Ambulance Service to agree on a plan to boost the number of people offering first response in a medical emergency.
Malvern HeartStart is helping to source defibrillators for the town and offering emergency cardiac response training.
People living in rural areas around Eldersfield, in the Longdon district of Malvern, raised concerns that many people live too far from a community defibrillator to allow lifesaving treatment.
Malvern Hills District Councillor Jennie Watkins worked with Malvern MP Dame Harriett Baldwin to bring local people together with HeartStart Malvern and the Ambulance Trust to identify a plan to improve support in rural areas.
The Ambulance Service’s Cliff Medlicott donated a defibrillator to Eldersfield Parish Council to help improve local coverage.
Cliff said he would work with councillors to boost volunteer involvement and set up a community action scheme across rural Worcestershire.
Coun Watkins said: “We now have the opportunity to work closely with partners to improve on coverage and create community solutions.
“We hope to set up a scheme across our six parishes and I will be lobbying Malvern Hills District Council to help fund and support an expansion across the district to ensure all residents can get access to a defibrillator if needed.”
