A NEW defibrillator has been installed at Leicester's Pork Pie Library to help extend coverage in that area of the city.

The community public access defibrillator, or CPAD for short, has been installed on the external wall of the library, where it is available for use if needed at any time of the day or night. In a cardiac emergency, immediate CPR and defibrillation can increase the chances of survival to over 50%.

The new defibrillator is one of a raft of 30 being installed across Leicester as part of the Heartshield project. Heartshield is a partnership between Leicester City Council's public health team, East Midlands Ambulance Service (EMAS) and local heart charity the Joe Humphries Memorial Trust (JHMT).

Lord Mayor of Leicester Cllr Teresa Aldred, who has chosen JHMT as one of the charities she is supporting during her year in office, said: "It's wonderful to see another defibrillator go in as part of the Heartshield project. This is a really good example of communities working together with local charities and organisations to bring about a change that could one day save somebody's life. I'm very proud to be supporting this vital cause."

Cllr Vi Dempster, assistant city mayor for public health, said: "It's great news that we're able to install another defibrillator in a well-used community location, where it can be available whenever it is needed.

"Around 30,000 people in Leicester live with at least one cardiovascular condition, so it's really important that we do all we can to make Leicester a heart-safe city. By installing more community defibrillators and training people in how to use them, we can increase survival rates."

JHMT medical trustee Dr Mike Ferguson said: "Currently in the UK, there are 60,000 cardiac arrests per year - that's one every 10 seconds. Half of these are witnessed, yet only 10% survive. To improve mortality rates, it's vitally important that publicly-accessible defibrillators are readily available in case of a cardiac emergency, and that people learn how to use them and how to give CPR.

"JHMT is delighted to formally collaborate with the city council's public health team and EMAS to maximise the chances of someone surviving an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest. The Heartshield programme will help to increase provision, especially in those areas of the community identified as having very limited access to this key lifesaving equipment."

Currently, the Eyres Monsell area has only one other defibrillator available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Local councillors Elaine Pantling and Karen Pickering have been advocating for the project, looking for other high-footfall locations which would be good places to site additional CPADs. They said they were proud to support the Heartshield initiative on behalf of Eyres Monsell, and hope to work together with Heartshield to get even more defibrillators installed in the future.

https://news.leicester.gov.uk/news-articles/2025/november/new-lifesaving-defibrillator-available-247-at-pork-pie-library/

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