Teachers and staff learn how to restart a heart.

Last week, a training session was run at Dartmouth Academy to show staff how to use an automated external defibrillator (AED).

Two members from the Kingsbridge Estuary Rotary Heartstart Team ran the session. Despite many staff members receiving previous training in CPR, none of the attendees have any training in the use of an AED.

However, by the end of the session, all participants said they felt competent and confident that if the situation called for it, they would use an AED.

The influence for this event started last October when pupils at the academy took part in the European Restart a Heart Day. Over 100 pupils were trained in CPR.

As a result of this and other developments at the academy, the school purchased an AED which is in place to help save the life of anyone having a cardiac arrest at the Academy.

However, the responsibility of using an AED or starting CPR would most likely fall to members of staff, hence the organisation of the session for staff.