A LIFESAVING charity launched in Malvern less than a year ago has reached a major milestone.

Heartstart Malvern, which was launched in January 2017 to train members of the public in basic resuscitation techniques, has just trained its 1,000th volunteer.

Former paramedic Richard Vakis-Lowe set up the charity after reading in the Malvern Gazette about how a man's life was saved after he collapsed with a cardiac arrest during a performance at the Coach House Theatre in Grange Road.

Since then, volunteers have been busy delivering free training in local schools and to community groups. They also hold monthly training sessions which anyone can attend.

The training is practical and takes just over an hour and a half to complete. During the session, people are taught skills including basic cardio pulmonary resuscitation, how to use a defibrillator and how to recognise a heart attack.

Although these skills are very simple, they can make the difference between someone surviving or not surviving a cardiac arrest.

Mr Vakis-Lowe said: "Training 1,000 people in less than 12 months is quite an achievement which would not have been possible without our team of dedicated volunteer trainers.

"Many of our trainers are helping deliver two or three sessions a month which is a tremendous commitment and will undoubtedly help increase the chance of people surviving a cardiac arrest in Malvern.

"All of our training courses have been evaluated. The evaluations clearly show that people enjoy the training, find it very worthwhile and would recommend it to others."

Heartstart Malvern also wants to install 50 public access defibrillators in Malvern.

Working in partnership with other organisations, the charity has already helped install six defibrillators and hopes to install another six before the end of the year.

Mr Vakis-Lowe said: "Heartstart Malvern is now aiming to train another 1,000 people in 2018. We are keen to hear from any individuals, community groups or schools who might be interest in being trained. We would also like to hear from any local businesses or group who can help us achieve our target of installing 50 defibrillators."

Anyone interested can contact Heartstart Malvern at heartstartmalvern.org.uk or 01684 342999.