First Aid Training at Tadpole Garden Village: A community initiative to empower residents

Monday 14th August 2017

Tadpole Garden Village First Aiders

Examples of a strong community are plentiful at Tadpole Garden Village, with Wiltshire Wildlife Trust planting days, allotment openings and a community mobiliser in place to help champion community initiatives. The latest community event, however, aimed to empower residents in case of an emergency.

In July 2017, at the development’s primary school – Tadpole Farm CofE Primary Academy – first aid trainers, Kidz First Aid, equipped six Tadpole Garden Village residents with the knowledge of what to do in an emergency situation.

With the youngest participant, Lily, being only 11 years old, all the residents took the training in their stride.

Provided by Millie’s Trust, the training was free to parents of under-ones, with a minimal donation required for other participants. Joanne and Dan Thompson set up Millie’s Trust after their precious daughter Millie choked and died whilst eating mashed potato on her third day of nursery at the age of nine months. Joanne and Dan believe that everyone should have access to First Aid Training no matter what their situation in life is. They aim to make First Aid Training readily available for minimal costs and in as many places as possible.

Resident Laura Mulcock, who organised the course, commented: “In cases of cardiac arrest there is only a 6% chance of survival where no first aid is given. This rises to a 74% chance of survival if someone can administer CPR and defibrillation within three minutes.

“You never know when you are going to be that one person who arrives in the three-minute window, so it’s vital as many people as possible know what to do. As a parent I am always conscious that my children could easily have an accident at any time, but by equipping myself with the knowledge of what to do if something goes wrong, I will know how to handle the situation successfully.”

All in all, the training is a fantastic example of resident initiatives helping to build happier, safer communities. After the success of this event, Preim is looking to roll out the training to all other garden villages they work with.