Life-saving defibrillator unveiled at Barnstaple Royal Mail depot

A life-saving defibrillator has been unveiled at the Royal Mail Barnstaple Delivery Office in the town centre and is available for anyone to use in a life or death cardiac emergency.

The equipment was made possible by a fundraising drive by Barnstaple Royal Mail staff and co-funded by the Devon-based Jay’s Aim charity.

It was officially unveiled this morning (Friday, December 12) by North Devon MP Ian Roome when he made his traditional pre-Christmas visit to the delivery office by Queen Street to show support for all the staff at such a busy time of year.

Helen Cooper, the site’s health and safety rep, said staff had raised money with a variety of events including a coffee and cake morning and lucky squares.

She added: “The effort from the whole delivery office to fundraise for our Jay’s Aim defibrillator shows how big-hearted the posties in Barnstaple are and always ready to help our local community.

“We have several trained first aiders on site including Adam Mason and Kieron Murdoch, who have already used their skills to help with an accident directly outside the unit, when the grandmother of one of our posties had a bad fall recently.

“Happily now she’s fully recovered but their training was invaluable and this defibrillator further enhances the help Royal Mail and its staff can offer to local people and other businesses in situations like that.”

In an emergency when someone suffers a cardiac arrest – their heart stops beating – a nearby defibrillator can literally be the difference between life and death.

This latest one is on the outside wall of the delivery office and can be used by anyone. Ambulance service call handlers will direct callers to the nearest defib and talk them through the process, while the machine itself also provides step-by-step instructions.

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The family of young Devon man Jay Osborne set up Jay’s Aim after he died suddenly aged just 28 from an undetected heart condition.

The charity works to raise awareness of unknown heart conditions, provide free CPR training, install defibrillators and highlight the importance of cardiac screening.

Tim Stevens, lead manager at Royal Mail Barnstaple Delivery Office, said: “We are proud to have partnered with Jay’s Aim to provide this life saving public access defibrillator.

“This equipment has been co-funded between our staff and Jay’s Aim charity and is a testament to the importance of community involvement and collaboration.”

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North Devon MP Ian Roome added: “It was great to visit the posties at Barnstaple Delivery Office this morning. They’re working incredibly hard to deliver parcels, letters and cards in the run-up to Christmas, with volumes up around 20% on last year.

“It was also a real pleasure to hand over vouchers to some of the team who’ve had fantastic feedback from customers; a small way of saying thank you for going the extra mile.

“I was also hugely impressed to hear how staff have raised significant funds and with support from Royal Mail, installed a defibrillator at the entrance to the delivery office. It has already been used in the community, so just goes to show how important this is.

“If you can, please do take a moment to recognise your local postie this Christmas, it goes a long way.”

Anyone who would like to find out more about the Jay’s Aim charity or make a donation is welcome to visit https://www.jaysaim.co.uk

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