Schools go big on life-saving lessons

MORE than 100 North-West schools, including some in Oldham, have signed up to St John Ambulance’s Big First Aid Lesson next month.

The charity is hosting the free, one-hour, online first aid session, hosted by TV presenter Claudia Winkleman, which will be streamed into classrooms on Friday, June 12.

At the Hathershaw College in Oldham, 420 students aged 11 and 12 will be taking part.

Jacky Ellis, hospitality and lunchtime manager, said: “We would like to equip our students to be able to deal with everyday situations which require basic first aid.

“This is an area we are keen to improve in order to ensure our students become more responsible citizens.”

A recent study found that people in the North-West believe that first aid lessons should be a national curriculum requirement.

The study found that nearly 59 per cent of children have no life-saving knowledge, leaving them without the skills to deal with basic emergency situations, such as identifying if someone is breathing or how to help someone who is choking.

With only weeks to go before the event, schools in the area are being encouraged to sign up for the lesson, which will combine first aid training and 999 scenarios with real-life stories, as well as plenty of opportunities for pupils to join in online.

Graham Ellis, regional training and community projects manager at St John Ambulance, said: “Our Big First Aid Lesson addresses the public’s desire for first aid education in the classroom while it doesn’t feature in the national curriculum.

“We hope they can help us motivate their child’s school to take part — it could be the most important lesson they ever learn.

“Like parents and teachers, we want to give children the best start in life by giving every young person the chance to learn first aid.

“There is nothing worse than feeling helpless in an emergency and although we hope they will never need to use these skills, they can be a real life line.”

For more information about the Big First Aid Lesson or to register, go to www.sja.org.uk/bigfirstaidlesson

email: lucykenderdine@oldham-chronicle.co.uk