A REAL life saver has been installed at Tenbury High School.

In future people from Tenbury and the surrounding area will have a better chance of surviving a heart attack.

This follows the installation of a ‘heart start’ machine at the front of Tenbury High School.

Now staff and some students at the Tenbury High School Ormiston Academy will receive training in how to use the machines

It will be available for use in emergencies and should help to buy time for people who suffer heart attacks or heart failure.

The defibrillator is installed at the front of the school in a clearly visible bright yellow box.

Students from the school along with staff and parents and friends have raised money to pay for the defibrillator that has also benefited from funding from the Hereford and Worcester First Responder Charity.

The training that will be given to students will give them an important new skill and also make them aware of the issue of heart attacks.

“We understand how valuable this equipment is in saving lives and now having one available for the whole community is fantastic,” said Christine Sheppard from the Tenbury High School Ormiston Academy.

“It has been a lot of work getting to this point but everyone has been extremely generous and it will be well worth if it is needed in an emergency.

“Thank you to everyone who has helped us.”

The heart start machines can be used with basic training to give an electric shock to a heart that has stopped beating in order to get it going again until professional help arrives.

It is vitally important that anyone who suffers a heart attack gets help as soon as possible because experts say that for every minute that is lost the chance of survival is reduced by 23 per cent.

The ‘heart start’ machines cost about £1,500 and are kept in a box with a coded lock which is known to volunteers.

Defibrillators cannot replace the role of medical professionals but they can provide a vital lifeline before expert help arrives.

They are especially important in isolated rural areas where it is likely that an ambulance or professional help will take longer to arrive.

Defibrillators have been installed in a number of parts of Ludlow and in market towns and villages in south Shropshire including the Clun Valley.

A defibrillator is a device that gives a high energy electric shock to the heart through the chest wall to someone who is in cardiac arrest.

This high energy shock is called defibrillation, and it's an essential life-saving step in the chain of survival.

Using the machines is relatively simple as they come with full instructions including audible messages. While it is possible for people without any experience or training to use them it is highly desirable that people have been trained.

This training that is provided by the Ambulance Service also includes other first aid techniques including cardiopulmonary resuscitation also known as mouth to mouth resuscitation.