Salisbury community comes together to bring a new defibrillator for Bemerton Heath

Partners from across the city joined together to celebrate the installation of a new defibrillator on the front of the Bemerton Heath Centre on Pinewood Way.

Spencer Mulholland, local resident and volunteer, and Cllr Caroline Corbin approached Salisbury City Council’s community development team in December 2024 with the idea of bringing this vital resource to The Heath.

The Head of Community Services and the council’s facilities team swung into action, and in less than 2 months, the Mindray BeneHeart C1A Defibrillator has been installed and is ready for use, thanks to the team at D&N Maintenance, who installed the device for free. 50% of the cost of the device was donated by an anonymous resident, for which the council and the community give huge thanks.

Accessible to anyone facing the terrifying prospect of a friend or loved one having a cardiac event, the defibrillator can be accessed by following the instructions on the front of the locked defibrillator cabinet.

The device itself speaks instructions for use, meaning that anyone can use it! 

Carolyn Port, Owner and Director of Winterbury Training, will be offering defibrillator information sessions at the Bemerton Heath Centre on Friday, 14th February, at 3.30 pm and Tuesday, 18th February, at 6 pm. Anyone who wants to attend can just turn up.

“We have been offering free training on how to use a defibrillator and do CPR following all of the defibrillators going in around the county. It's brilliant that we've got extra resources and lots of people willing to be trained to save lives,” said Carolyn. 

Spencer Mulholland said, “I'm coordinating the grant, and we were lucky to be donated half the cost of this defibrillator by a very generous member of the public, who I wish to thank sincerely. That donation will ultimately save lives. I would also like to thank everyone else that's taken part in this exercise. David Jacobs and his team, Carolyn Port, who's providing training in lifesaving skills and everyone associated with the council.”

Cllr Caroline Corbin, Chair for the Community Services Committee and councillor for the Bemerton Heath Ward, said, “A community defibrillator is an asset to any community and with or without training are fairly easy to use. We have been fortunate in Salisbury that Spencer Mulholland has been a spearhead for this project and asked me where in Bemerton Heath could be good sites. I suggested our own building as with community groups etc it’s important to be able to access lifesaving equipment at the time of need, without having to hunt around for the nearest device. 

“Great thanks to Spencer who initiated the project, D&N Maintenance who installed the device and Winterbury Training who will deliver free training for those wishing to uptake it. Community empowerment and team work at its finest.”

Sarah Gregson, Head of Community Services, said, “The Bemerton Heath Centre is a real hub for the community, lots of groups of all ages come here on a regular basis, so this is somewhere people are familiar with and they're going to know where this defibrillator is. 

“We also have a great relationship with all the young people who walk to and from school, so it's just a real key point. Everybody's going to know where they can get hold of this vital support if they need it.”

British Heart Foundation research shows that “public access defibrillators were available within 500m of a cardiac arrest in 79% of cases, but only used in 10%.”

Public awareness and confidence are key. If used within the first minute, the survival rate can be as high as 90%. If a defibrillator is used within the first 3 to 5 minutes, the likelihood of survival drops by 16%, showing that having a defibrillator close by makes a huge difference."

Getting more of these public access devices across the city is important, and Spencer is already working on his next defibrillator project. If anyone can help with a location or fund-raising, please contact mulhollandspencer@gmail.com.