Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department plans to take to (a) help increase survival rates from out-of-hospital cardiac arrests and (b) increase the availability of defibrillators in Warrington.

The Department does not hold data on automated external defibrillators (AEDs) installed on Government buildings, or whether those AEDs are registered on the Circuit. The Circuit is a national defibrillator and ambulance service database, operated independently by the British Heart Foundation in collaboration with the National Health Service.

The Government is committed to improving access to AEDs in public spaces, and reducing inequalities in access to these life saving devices. We have made a further £500,000 available from August 2024 to fulfil existing applications to the Department’s Community AED Fund. The criteria specified for the original grant continues to apply, and will go to applications for AEDs in areas of England where there is the greatest need, including in areas of high footfall, hot spots for cardiac arrest, and areas that already have low access to AEDs.

Once installed, these AEDS are required to be registered on the Circuit. Upon registration, contact details are provided for the nominated AED guardian, or guardians, who are local to the defibrillator’s location and conduct checks when required. The registered guardian receives an automatic email or text notification if the defibrillator has potentially been used, therefore prompting the guardian to conduct a check on the AED.