BASED on the belief that defibrillators should be as readily accessible in public spaces as fire extinguishers, a Lydiard Park Academy pupil has managed to raise enough money to fund one for his school.

Josh Drinkwater set out on the fundraising mission earlier this month after hearing that the nearest piece of life-saving equipment was a 16-minute journey away.

But with the support of his peers and teacher Corrine Hunter, the 17-year-old managed to raise £1,400 through a Valentine’s Day themed event at school to buy a defibrillator.

The Year 13 head boy said: “It was last June when I went to a first aid training course and when we learnt about how to deal with a casualty who was both unconscious and not breathing, we were introduced to the importance of an AED defibrillator,” he said.

“The trainer seemed quite shocked that our school didn’t have a defibrillator on site, which is why I wanted to raise money to fund one.

“I want to study medicine at university next year and I believe strongly that defibrillators should be as readily available in public spaces as fire extinguishers are as a cardiac incident could happen at any time.”

Josh, who has been a volunteer on the dementia ward at the GWH for the last 12 months, raised the money through donations from pupils wearing non-school uniform, a cake sale as well as a love letter delivery service on February 10.

With the defibrillator now on its way to the school, Josh hopes once the equipment is installed, it could help save a life of someone who suffers a cardiac arrest in the area.

“Every minute in those situations matter and that round trip to the cafe could cause life-changing brain and cardiac damage due to the restricted supply of oxygen carried in the blood during a cardiac arrest,” he added.

“Finding out that the nearest defibrillator was so far away was quite a surprise. It made me think that someone would have to die or be seriously injured before we got one here on school which is why I wanted to do something before that happens.

“My mum worked at the hospital in the cardiology department and my grandad has had a heart attack and so I’ve become quite familiar with it all and how a defibrillator can help.

“Now that I’ve had to apply for university, I wanted to show them through my personal statement that I am really interested in medicine and we fundraised for the defibrillator to help other people.”