‘Everyone needs to learn first aid’

Emma Hammett BEM is the CEO of First Aid for Life, an award-winning training provider. She talks to Sarah Dale about why she is passionate about first aid being a skill everyone should know and her upcoming humanitarian project.

Emma Hammett is looking forward to an exciting year ahead. In November, she will be awarded an BEM by King Charles III for services to first aid training and providing support to the community.

And in February, she is off for the adventure of a lifetime to carry out humanitarian work in West Pokot, a remote part of Kenya on the Ugandan border. She will be off grid and travelling on the back of a motorbike for a month training ambulance drivers who are collecting people from remote villages. She will also be helping to carry out some building work and providing health education in schools.

“It’s so exciting,” says Emma, whose nursing career began in 1985 at St Thomas’ Hospital where she trained and worked.

“When I’ve been a mum for so long, it’s a chance to re-discover myself. It’s a huge adventure and I’m really looking forward to it but I couldn’t do it without my fabulous team who will run things while I’m away.”

Emma established First Aid for Life in 2007 after a career in several clinical and managerial roles, as well as a stint as a nurse in Wandsworth Prison. She started the company after being shocked to discover that first aid training can be provided following a three-day course.

First Aid for Life’s trainers are all health emergency professionals and military service medics. Courses can be bespoke and adapted to organisations’ needs such as providing more information on head and spinal injuries to sports organisations, for example, practical training to save people who have attempted suicide or catastrophic bleeding training in schools and youth organisations. They have also provided training to groups of people with disabilities such as sight loss or hearing impairment, as well as in schools and prisons.

They have also diversified into first aid training for dogs and even have a dog model to help learners practise dislodging food or foreign objects. They are currently working on a first aid course for cats.

“It’s important to do first aid training properly, that what is being taught is researched properly and delivered by medical professionals,” she says.

“As a learner, you need to have complete confidence that the person in front of you has the competence and confidence to teach you first aid and answer any questions.”

Emma’s sister Penelope was left paraplegic following a car accident.

“If bystanders had known first aid, they could have cleared her blocked airway and, it is possible that she would have been okay,” says Emma, who has two grown-up children. “Everyone needs to know first aid. It’s not only about saving lives, it’s about saving someone’s quality of life. I’m glad to see it’s on the school curriculum` now but it needs more hours devoted to it.”

First Aid for Life now has 58 trainers across the UK and Ireland, a small office team including two office managers, a marketing and communications team, a data analyst, a graphic designer based in Buenos Aires and a computing team in India.

Emma has been a member of Wandsworth Chamber of Commerce for many years and credits the Chamber for their “invaluable support” through Covid.

“I have never felt so lost and demoralised than I did during Covid and having that business community on hand and financial help that I would have never asked for or accessed without their help was invaluable,” says Emma, who carried out Covid vaccinations during the pandemic.

“The Pitch to the Supplier events are incredible and the Chamber has linked us with South Bank University to source funded student help as well as access to big businesses.”

Although they were allowed to continue teaching during the Covid lockdowns as an essential training provider, the number of people accessing face-to-face courses significantly dropped.

Fortunately, Emma had set up Onlinefirstaid. com in 2014 so had a bank of online courses ready to roll out as more people turned to virtual learning.

McDonald’s approached them and First Aid for Life trained over 1,000 managers across the UK and Ireland during Covid. The partnership has continued and they have created a bespoke McDonald’s course for the fast food chain.

Emma’s leadership style is quite relaxed and she encourages flexible working.

“It’s important to delegate and to empower your team to make decisions and drive the business as it makes for a far more interesting job for them,” she adds.

“Their ideas provide a great new perspective and everyone feels more connected to the business. I’m an ideas person so I need organisers and doers in my team to bring my ideas to life and help shape the business.

“I love the fact that our marketing comms and data analytics team is young and vibrant and in tune with all the new trends. They love trying and testing new things. So long as it is on brand, aligns with our values and doesn’t offend in any way, we will give it a go.”