Lifesaving Defibrillator Installed at new Weeping Cross Co-op Store

Posted by nathan lloyd | Published: 13/07/2016


Central England Co-operative is quite literally getting to the heart of local communities thanks to a new scheme which will see hundreds of life-saving defibrillators installed at outlets across the Society’s trading area.

The device, which gives the heart an electric shock to allow effective cardiac rhythm to be re-established, has now been installed at the new Co-op store, in Lynton Avenue, Weeping Cross.

Central England Co-operative is opening the doors to its new convenience food store, Lynton Avenue, Weeping Cross on Friday 15 July, which will replace the Society’s Bodmin Avenue store across the road.

Anna Dutton, Store Manager at Lynton Avenue, said:

“We are delighted to have been such an integral part of ensuring this lifesaving device has been installed at our store.

“If the defibrillator is ever needed, anyone can call 999 and the emergency operator will pass on a code that will open the locked case that it is stored in.

“The device will then talk the person through how to use it – it is easy to use and every member of the community will be able to do so if needed.”

It is estimated that around 100,000 people die from Sudden Cardiac Arrest in the UK each year and, while CPR saves the lives of around 9%, if CPR is used alongside a defibrillator the chance of survival increases to 50%. 

As a community retailer, Central England Co-operative already has defibrillators sited at a number of its outlets but has now announced funding for the phased installation of hundreds of defibrillators over the next year.

The business will work with ambulance services to identify the most suitable sites for equipment and, where possible, these will be in external locations allowing community use in an emergency at any time of day or night.

Notes to editors

About Central England Co-operative

Central England Co-operative is one of the largest independent retail co-operative societies in the UK. It is a modern, forward-looking organisation employing over 8,000 staff, with projected gross sales of £958million for 2016/17. The Society recently celebrated being named Leading Co-operative of the Year 2016 by Co-operatives UK. The Society’s principal areas of activity are food, funeral services, and property. Central England Co-operative has more than 430 trading outlets across 16 counties including; West Midlands, Warwickshire, Worcestershire, Staffordshire, Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Rutland, Nottinghamshire, Northamptonshire, Lincolnshire, West Yorkshire, South Yorkshire, Suffolk, Norfolk, Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire.  The Society has an ambitious food store development programme for 2015/16.

Central England Co-operative is proud of its reputation for ethical business practices and corporate responsibility.  It is a member of Business in the Community, the membership organisation that stands for responsible business, and has also won many business awards for excellence.  The Society supports a number of charities including Newlife Foundation for Disabled Children and invests a percentage of its trading profit into local communities.

For more information visit www.centralengland.coop, follow Central England Co-operative on Twitter: @mycoopfood, and on Facebook: facebook.com/centralenglandcooperative
Rob Smyth / Jo Baldock at Central England Co-operative on 01543 414140
Email –publicrelations@centralengland.coop