Tomorrows Lifesavers is back in schools for the new academic year, and this term has taken us into classrooms right across the country. It has been a busy start, and a good reminder of why we do this.
Every session ends the same way. A room of children who had never thought about what to do if someone collapsed, now know how to check for breathing, call 999 and start chest compressions. Some of them will go home and show their parents that evening.
What happens in a session
Every school is different, so we shape each session around the pupils and what the school wants to cover. Children practise chest compressions on manikins and rehearse a 999 call so they know what the call handler will ask them. They also learn how to put someone in the recovery position. Most of the time is spent doing rather than listening, because that is what sticks.
Younger pupils are often more confident than adults. They have not yet picked up the fear of getting it wrong, and many of them go home and teach their families what they learned that day.
Why it matters
Basic first aid has been part of statutory health education in England since 2020, but how much gets delivered varies a great deal from school to school. Many teachers tell us they would like to cover it properly but do not have the time or the equipment to teach it themselves. That is the gap Tomorrows Lifesavers is there to fill.
Our aim is to train one million young people by 2035. Every class we visit this term moves us closer, and every child who learns CPR adds one more person in their community who could help in an emergency.
Thank you to every school that has welcomed us this term, and to everyone who has supported the programme.
If you would like Tomorrows Lifesavers to visit your school, or your organisation would like to get involved, get in touch.