The Royal Star & Garter Homes in Solihull is taking part in a new life-saving initiative.

The Charity is volunteering to take part in The Circuit: The National Defibrillator Network, which is being trial-run by The West Midlands Ambulance Service (WMAS) and the British Heart Foundation (BHF).

The aim of the project is to create a UK-wide network of defibrillators which will be accessed by all UK ambulance services. The trial is taking place in West Midlands, with The Royal Star & Garter Homes among the organisations registering in the area.

The BHF say the network will link ambulance services with the public in a bid to help save more lives from cardiac arrests. It will allow ambulance services to easily and quickly direct people to their nearest defibrillator so that more lives can be saved by members of the public.

Home Manager Cheryl Harbourne said: “Our defibrillator is here for the community to use. By being part of this trial and working with West Midlands Ambulance Service and British Heart Foundation, we hope that if it should ever be needed, members of the public will have easy access to the device and put it to good use.”

WMAS General Manager Nick Henry said: “The Trust is so pleased and grateful that The Royal Star & Garter Home is able to assist in the first local trial session for The Circuit: National Defibrillator Network. It’s so important to get this project right for patients who need the automated external defibrillator quickly.”

Bharat Solanki, Programme Manager at the British Heart Foundation, said:“We hope the National Defibrillator Network will save lives by enabling the emergency services to locate defibrillators when someone goes into cardiac arrest. We hope this will prevent thousands of avoidable deaths in years to come.”

The Royal Star & Garter Home in Surbiton purchased a defibrillator, which is registered with London Ambulance Service, earlier this year. Plans are also in place for a defibrillator at the Charity’s new Home in High Wycombe.