Thousands of children to be taught lifesaving skills

Students at Bishop Thomas Grant School in Streatham have already been taught lifesaving skills

Thousands of children will be taught how to save a life in a bid to create a "generation of lifesavers". 

London Ambulance Service (LAS) medics will teach 90,000 Year 8 children how to perform chest compressions and use a defibrillator.

Students in Streatham have already been taught the skills after a member of staff collapsed and died this year.

Bernie Boyle, head of Bishop Thomas Grant School, said the school was "proud" to be part of the programme.

"Experiencing a loss like that only brings it home how important it is for everyone to learn lifesaving skills," she said.

The London Ambulance Service is aiming to instruct 90,000 Year 8 pupils across London

The London Lifesavers campaign was launched on Monday and is the biggest programme of its kind to target children in the capital, LAS said. 

Sam Palfreyman-Jones, head of First Responders, said: "Most cardiac arrests happen in the home, so we are telling children that by learning these simple skills, they could save someone they love."

She told BBC London that the training had already been put into action, after a pupil saved someone's life by using chest compressions on them at school.

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"It's already worked... and it will definitely save lives going forward," she said.

Using chest compressions and a defibrillator can more than double someone's chances of survival, LAS said.

'Training kicked in'

Teenager Olivia Christofides saved her stepfather Geraldo Folie's life by performing chest compressions after he collapsed at home earlier this year.

"I learnt what to do at Scouts five or six years ago but the training kicked in," she said. "I'm so happy seeing Geraldo at home now. I see him laugh and tell myself 'wow, look what I did'." 

As part of its campaign, LAS is also trying to get thousands more defibrillators into communities.

On Monday morning, the Mayor of London Sadiq Khan announced that all London Underground, Overground stations and Dial-a-Ride vehicles now had public-access defibrillators.

It means that every London borough now has a Transport for London defibrillator.

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