New life-saving defibrillator installed at popular pub in Chadderton
A new community defibrillator has been installed at the Rifle Range Pub in Chadderton, funded by Ashleigh Pilkington-Leach, a Trustee of Defibrillators Save Lives, who raised money by running the Manchester Half Marathon. The device is registered on The Circuit, the British Heart Foundation's national defibrillator network, and will be accessible to the community in emergencies. The pub will host a free defibrillator familiarisation session to educate residents on its use.
Chadderton pub installs life-saving defibrillator funded by charity runner
A defibrillator that could save the lives of thousands of Chadderton residents is now fixed to the front wall of the Rifle Range Pub after a trustee of the charity Defibrillators Save Lives ran the Manchester Half Marathon to pay for it.
JW Lees Brewery and the pub’s management agreed to host the cabinet, making the device available 24 hours a day to anyone within 500 m who dials 999.
Ashleigh Pilkington-Leach, who raised the full cost of the unit by completing the 13.1-mile race in October 2024, said:
“A defibrillator saved my dad’s life, so if I can give that opportunity to someone else, that would be amazing.”
The machine is registered on The Circuit, the British Heart Foundation’s national database, allowing North West Ambulance Service call-handlers to direct bystanders to it when cardiac arrest is suspected.
Fewer than one in ten out-of-hospital cardiac-arrest victims in the UK receive a shock from a public device before paramedics arrive, figures show.
Scott Woodhead, chairman of Defibrillators Save Lives, said early defibrillation is the third link in the “Chain of Survival” after recognising the emergency and starting CPR.
”Every second counts in a cardiac arrest, and the more defibrillators we place in our communities, the more lives we can potentially save,” he added.
Regular patron Patrick Mellor welcomed the addition.
”It’s fantastic to have a community defibrillator at the Rifle Range Inn. It brings great peace of mind knowing that such a valuable device is available for all residents in the area,” he said.
A free familiarisation session run by trustee Jane Rawlings, who also owns Jane Rawlings Training Consultancy, will be held at the pub so residents can practise using the equipment.
Defibrillators Save Lives says it will continue campaigning for more public-access devices and CPR training across Oldham until every neighbourhood has the tools to restart a heart.
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