Life-saving campaign

A CAMPAIGN to provide a new defibrillator has been launched by a city councillor.

Lorraine Francis, who represents the Eastville ward for the Greens on the city council, hopes to raise £5,000 to fund a defibrillator at The Star pub in Fishponds Road. Any surplus funds will go to support the vital work of the Great Western Air Ambulance Charity.

The fundraising effort was prompted by the death of 24-year-old rugby player Sam Polledri following a cardiac arrest in the city centre last year.

At a council meeting, a motion to make Bristol a "CPR-friendly city" was passed, with Councillor Francis speaking in support.

She said: "As with many good ideas it often takes a tragedy and a family’s grief to bring the issue to the forefront. The Polledri family, through their grief, have been instrumental in making us think about the positioning of these potentially lifesaving instruments to make them accessible and visible to all."

Councillor Francis and the GWAAC also plan to provide training to diverse groups throughout the community, so that more people are prepared to administer vital assistance if needed, and have already provided training to a group of women in Eastville.

She has also secured separate funding for another defibrillator, and says she will be looking for a suitable location in the ward to place it.

Councillor Francis said: "If we have a defibrillator within a threeminute walk, and people with knowledge of how to save a life, we can give someone the best possible chance to survive until the advanced care they need is provided. Please support this vital cause."

Donations can be made online at bit.ly/3ZT72K3.