CPR in schools

What is CPR?

Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) is a critical and potentially lifesaving skill. The technique often combines rescue breathing (mouth-to-mouth) with giving chest compressions to a person in cardiac arrest to keep them alive.

Over 300,000 cardiac arrests occur out of the hospital in the UK every year. Fewer than 1 in 10 of those survive. People of all ages can be ready to help someone having a cardiac arrest by learning CPR as soon as possible.

Should CPR be taught in schools?

After years of lobbying the UK government by the Resuscitation Council UK and its partner organisations through its Every Child a Lifesaver campaign, CPR training is now mandatory in schools across the UK. In England, primary school children receive basic first aid training, while secondary school pupils receive further first aid education such as CPR and when and how to use a defibrillator. In 2019 every local authority in Scotland committed to teaching CPR to secondary school pupils. In 2021, education minister Michelle McIlveen announced that all school pupils aged 11-14 in Northern Ireland learn CPR as part of the school curriculum from the 2022/23 academic year. That same year, the Curriculum and Assessment (Wales) Bill became law. The Welsh Minister for Education committed to including lifesaving skills in the statutory guidance, meaning that CPR is due to be taught in Welsh schools from 2022.

In the UK, the survival rate from bystander CPR is less than 10%, whereas, in countries such as Norway, where CPR training has been mandatory in schools since 1961, survival rates from bystander CPR are 70%. In Denmark, where CPR in schools became mandated in 2005, the chances of recovering from out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) are three times the UK.

Since children learn quickly and retail skills, teaching children CPR and awareness of the use of defibrillators (AED) in schools across the UK is preparing the future lifesavers of our nation, increasing OHCA survival rates.

Source: Resuscitation Counsil UK (RCUK).

CPR training equipment for schools

Schools need to invest in the right training equipment for their pupils. Browse our range of CPR training manikins from some of the world’s popular brands Ambu, Brayden, Laerdal and Life-Form. We also stock all of the spare parts and accessories that you may need.