RESIDENTS of a remote village now have improved access to life-saving equipment.
JF Hornby & Co’s Have a Heart campaign – launched in February 2024 – has donated a state-of-the-art defibrillator and external housing cabinet to Whicham Parish Council.
The kit was handed over to the Chair of the Parish Council, Andrew Fell, ahead of its installation in a restored phone box in Silecroft.
He said: “This will make a huge difference to the residents of Silecroft. Many of our local communities are isolated, and when vital minutes count, we need every resource possible.
“We do have a defibrillator located at the Village Hall; however, it is inaccessible when the level crossing barriers are down because a train is approaching, so this additional unit will be hugely reassuring.
“We are very grateful to the team at JF Hornby & Co for their kind donation.”
The phone box in Silecroft has recently been restored as part of a community effort. It stands proudly in the village near the junction of Main Street and Ash Bank, having been repainted in the regulation shade of red.
Whicham Parish Council will now work to have the defibrillator installed in the coming weeks.
The defibrillator was handed over by Richard Conway, a Payroll Executive at JF Hornby & Co who lives in nearby Millom.
He said: “It is easy to focus on larger, more populous towns when assessing the need for defibrillators, but rural areas have an equal, if not greater need for these life-saving devices due to their relative isolation.
“It weas clear from our meeting with representatives from Whicham Parish Council that his device will support a real need and it was my pleasure to hand it over.”
The JF Hornby & Co Have a Heart campaign has so far provided six top-of-the-range defibrillators and external housing units to communities across south Cumbria.
To date, they have been handed over to Ford Park, Ulverston; Roa Island, Barrow; Abbotts Vale Community Centre, Barrow; Barrow AFC; Millom Park; and Silecroft Village.
JF Hornby & Co’s Have a Heart campaign was launched on Valentine’s Day this year with an initial pledge of £5,000 to provide four defibrillators to communities in greatest need.
In response to the high number of requests, Managing Director Paul Hornby doubled the pledge to £10,000, enabling the purchase of eight life-saving devices.
The funding is being provided by The Hornby Foundation, the charitable arm of the company.
A partnership has also been established with the British Heart Foundation, through which The Hornby Foundation is acquiring the equipment.
The Have a Heart campaign has two remaining defibrillators to distribute to communities in need. If you would like to nominate an area, please email jfh@jfhornby.com
