The Vale of Belvoir - South Nottinghamshire and North Leicestershire
No previous experience is required. After joining our team East Midlands Ambulance Service will give you 4 days of professional training and you will continue to get ongoing support from EMAS and all your new colleagues at VFR !
“Thank you for everything you did for my husband; your team are brilliant and we can’t thank you enough.............”
Vale Resident
December 2010
E-mail chairman@vale-first-responders.com
We will be happy to get in touch and talk to you about life as a Responder, the rewards it brings and how you can get involved
E-mail heartstart@vale-first-responders.co.uk
One of THE most worthwhile ways of spending a couple of hours or so one evening. We will give you the techniques and confidence that could help you save a life
“The training by professionally qualified Ambulance Service staff is second to none. Whatever your background, from farmer to nurse, retail assistant to retired, the training provided will fill you with confidence and give you the skills to be a Responder. Few voluntary roles are so rewarding.”
“Heartstart is a great way of the team passing on some of the simple techniques that could help preserve life until a healthcare professional arrives. The feedback we get on courses is superb and people attending didn’t realise just how easy it would be to learn the basic techniques”
Gill is the VFR training officer and spent her working life as a cardiac nurse.
Our 300th Delegate
Mike Cox
Vale of Belvoir Rotary
Visit the EMAS website
A British Heart Foundation initiative run locally by VFR trained staff
As a result of our training with EMAS, our practical experiences out on the road and with the full support of our British Heart Foundation approved Training Director, VFR Responders are well qualified and proud to be the local trainers for :
Activated by EMAS Control where appropriate, we attend 999 calls in advance of our professional colleagues
Vale First Responders has been in existence since April 2005 and we have attended well over 1,000 emergency calls since then. Made up entirely of volunteers, we have a team of 14 qualified, experienced and active responders with 6 new team members in the process of becoming fully qualified and active Responders. As a registered charity we have a Board of Trustees made up of both Responders and Non-Responders bringing an appropriate balance to our internal governance.
Between them, our team regularly give up over 400 hours a month to provide emergency cover for The Vale and that is set to rise as our team grows. A few past and present members appear on the left below.
Oxygen apart, we purchase virtually all our own kit and we are delighted to have the support and encouragement of local Town and Parish Councils. We also have individual fundraisers and we are grateful to them for their continuing support - they know who they are !
VFR through affiliation to The British Heart Foundation provides training to residents of The Vale of Belvoir and beyond in the basic techniques of emergency life support, via the “Heartstart” initiative.
It only takes around three hours one evening and courses run regularly throughout the year. Details are provided to all the local magazines and publications so keep an eye open for a course near you and come along. It’s easy to learn and people tell us it’s a fun evening with a serious message - see the feedback page. And the best bit ? - it’s absolutely free, no charge at all, with tea and biscuits too !
If you want us to run a course specifically for your group or organisation then get in touch, we’ve done a number of such events in various locations. You never know when you’ll need a lifesaving skill so don’t wait, click the link below and we’ll be in touch.
Brian Watts with Mike Cox, Vale of Belvoir Rotary, our 300th successfully trained person in The Vale through the Heartstart scheme
New ! All our team now have the opportunity to become Advanced Drivers via the Institute of Advanced Motorists