First ever outdoor defibrillator for Exeter Cathedral School and popular Cathedral Green

A lifesaving defibrillator has been installed at Exeter Cathedral School, looking out over the popular Cathedral Green, thanks to local charity Jay’s Aim and GM Insurance Brokers.

Jay’s Aim is set up to reduce the number of young people who die of sudden cardiac arrests in the Southwest of England. They do this by funding heart screenings, providing free CPR/AED training and funding public access defibrillators. The charity is set up in memory of James ‘Jay’ Osborne who died of sudden cardiac arrest whilst out running in Exeter in June 2017. To date, the charity has provided over 125 public access defibrillators and trained just under 10,000 people in CPR and how to use a defibrillator.

Dan Osborne, Trustee at Jay’s Aim, said: “We were delighted to fund a public access defibrillator to Exeter Cathedral School as part of our ‘Jay’s Aim and GM Insurance Places of Education Scheme’. It’s great to know that pupils at the school will have access to a defibrillator immediately should they ever need one in an emergency. The fact that the defibrillator is also available to members of the public on Cathedral Green is a brilliant thing! We would like to thank GM Insurance for helping Jay’s Aim with the funding of this scheme, as well as Exeter Cathedral School for their contribution towards this defibrillator.”

The device, which delivers an electric current to restart the heart when someone is in cardiac arrest, has been placed in a prominent position, directly opposite the main entrance of The Ivy, making it the only defibrillator that is publicly accessible, 24/7, by Exeter Cathedral.

It has also been registered with The National Defibrillator Network as part of The Circuit – an initiative run by The British Heart Foundation which provides the NHS ambulance services with vital information about defibrillators across the UK.

James Featherstone, Headmaster at Exeter Cathedral School, said: “We're a city-centre school and it makes absolute sense that we should be partnering with other organisations for the benefit of the wider Exeter community. Teaming up with Jay's Aim and GM Insurance Brokers has been an exciting move; they are a real pleasure to work alongside, and the result is a superb new defibrillator on our school site that will serve the pupils, staff and guests of Exeter Cathedral School as well as local families, visitors and businesses.”

From now on, during the crucial moments after a cardiac arrest, anyone near Exeter Cathedral can access this defibrillator quickly, ultimately helping to save lives.

The device is designed to be used by someone with no medical training, with an in-built speaker giving simple step-by-step instructions to operate.

Company Director at GM Insurance Brokers, Lee Galan, said: “We’re enormously proud to be working with Jay’s Aim and, specifically in this case, the collective support of both Jay’s Aim and Exeter Cathedral School. We’re committed to supporting local communities and, wherever possible, spreading the word of the amazing work Dan and his team at Jay’s Aim do through training, awareness of their cause and the implementation of invaluable lifesaving equipment. On a personal note, having been a good friend of Jay, the knowledge that their training and equipment could save a life or reduce the chances of a family suffering an irreplaceable loss is priceless.”

Simon Aston, Health, Safety and Security Manager at Exeter Cathedral, said: “We would like to thank Exeter Cathedral School and the sponsors for providing this defibrillator – it really could save someone’s life. It will also serve as a reminder of the importance of emergency first aid, and hopefully motivate more people to get trained.”