Burnham has two new defibrillators in the village centre!

Burnham has two new defibrillators in the village centre, with a third to follow, thanks to funding from Thames Valley Heartbeat and support from local organisations. 

The two new devices have been installed at The Bee Public House, at the top of the High Street, and Burnham Youth Club on Minniecroft Road. 

The Parish Council decided to add more defibrillators, along with ‘bleed kits’, following a tragic incident in the village centre last year. After writing an article in Burnham Round and About Magazine, Parish Clerk Adam Killeya was contacted by Thames Valley Heartbeart, who fund defibrillators across the area. 

Thames Valley Heartbeart has very kindly funded both devices, and has agreed funding for a further defibrillator to go on the toilet block at Jennery Lane. The Parish Council has funded the cabinets and installation, and the owners of both The Bee and Burnham Youth Club kindly gave permission for the use of their buildings as sites. 

The Council’s defibrillators are all registered, to allow for access via the emergency services, and details of all the Council’s eight defibrillators across Burnham are on the Parish Council website. They are also regularly checked by the Council’s grounds team to make sure that they are working properly.

Cllr Graham Mummery, who led the project along with Parish Council staff, said “I was very keen to get bleed kits into the village centre, to reduce the risk for serious injuries. This fitted in very well with getting more defibrillators, and we’re very grateful to Thames Valley Heartbeat for their funding, as well as their expertise in helping to identify the best sites.”

Thames Valley Heartbeat added “Thames Valley Heartbeat is delighted to be donating three defibrillators to the Burnham community.  A number of our Trustees volunteer with the ambulance service and have seen first-hand how important they can be in the case of cardiac arrest.

Statistics show that there are 112,000 out of hospital cardiac arrests in the UK each year and 80% of them take place in the home.  The defibrillators will be in ideal locations right in the heart of the community.

We hope they will never be used, but know that if someone suffers a cardiac arrest they could save their life. We will continue to fundraise to install as many defibrillators as we can in communities within the Thames Valley.”

Cllr Marie Hammon, Chair of Burnam Parish Council said “I remember how the incident last year affected our community; by providing new bleed kits, we shall be ensuring that residents shall be in a far safer environment. The new defibrillators shall be a massive addition and a new layer of protection for the village. Along with the recent instillation of CCTV in the High Street, we shall continue to ensure the well-being of our community.”