A HEATED outdoor cabinet housing potentially life-saving equipment has been installed at Sandbach Rugby Club with help from Redrow.

The club is around a mile from Redrow’s Abbeyfields development in Sandbach and received around £500 towards the cost of the cabinet for a defibrillator for use by the local community.

Established in 1956, the club has a roster of activities including three adult teams playing on Saturdays and more than 400 boys and girls learning rugby and taking part in matches on Sundays.

Nearby Offley Primary School also uses the club’s facilities, with parents using its carpark as a drop off and pick up point for their children.

Philip Bell, chairman of Sandbach RUFC, said: “When someone suffers sudden cardiac arrest, prompt action by anyone nearby offers their only chance of survival. An immediate 999 call for an ambulance and starting CPR immediately are essential. Most people who survive will have needed a shock from a defibrillator to correct a chaotic heart rhythm. The earlier that shock is given, the better the person’s chance of survival.

“Because we’re very much a community club, we wanted to install an outside AED cabinet for use in emergency cases where someone in the local vicinity suffers a cardiac arrest. 

“Thanks to Redrow’s support we were able to purchase a heated cabinet so it can be stored outside and available to use for all members of the community, be they visitors to our facilities, members of Sandbach Health and Fitness based on our premises, our neighbours Offley Road School, all our visitors or our neighbours living nearby.”

The Sandbach Community Fund is in addition to the substantial investment Redrow is already making in the area through section 106 commitments agreed with the local authority, with contributions being made towards education, improvements at the M6 junction, railways, a local travel plan and tree-planting.

The community fund has seen more than £10,000 shared between community projects in the area with schools and sports clubs amongst the beneficiaries.

Elaine Mounsey, area sales manager for Redrow Homes (NW), said: “More than 100 defibrillators have been installed across our developments and divisional offices to provide the wider community in addition to Redrow staff and contractors access to potentially life-saving equipment. We’ve also partnered with Hand on Heart to provide defibrillators in schools and so we were keen to help Sandbach Rugby Club with their fundraising. Hopefully they won’t have to use their defibrillator but it could make a real difference in the event of a medical emergency.”

Located on Middlewich Road, just west of Sandbach, Abbeyfields features three and four-bedroom designs from Redrow’s Heritage Collection.

For information about the homes call 01270 861645 or see www.redrow.co.uk/abbeyfields.

Issued for & on behalf of Redrow Homes (NW) by Active PR

Main Image: Daniel Stokoe, Philip Bell, Dan Bradley