A £15,50o donation from Scotmid Co-operative has enabled charity St Andrew’s First Aid to aid 15 new bicycles to its response team.
The Glasgow-based charity, which provides first aiders at thousands of events across Scotland every year, has also bought new uniforms, safety equipment and video cameras – to assist with recording incidents for training purposes – with the funds.
The donation follows a £75,000 donation from Scotmid to the charity in 2015, to be spent over a three-year period.
St Andrew’s First Aid has 23 cycles operating in the Glasgow area and wants to expand its operations, with a target of 50 bikes in operation across the country.
Training is already underway for volunteers who have shown an interest in joining the squad. To date, 13 individuals have undergone cycle proficiency and equipment training. Further courses are planned for May to train more 30 volunteers.
Stuart Callison, chief executive of St Andrew’s First Aid, said: “The continued support from Scotmid remains truly valuable in our dedication to provide Scotland with the highest levels of trained first aiders. It is also supporting our ambition to further grow our reach through the delivery of such resources as the cycle squad.
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“Scotmid’s sponsorship has already helped us deliver a number of benefits for the people of Scotland and we remain greatly appreciative of their involvement.”
John Brodie, chief executive of Scotmid Co-operative, said: “This boost to the cycle squad will help speed up response times to incidents attended by St. Andrew’s volunteers, particularly in areas that may be hard for an ambulance to reach. This could be the difference between life and death.
“St Andrew’s First Aid provides a vital service to Scotland and, as a co-operative organisation, part of our ethos at Scotmid is to look at how and where we can support charities like them and help boost the valuable services they are delivering in their local communities.”
