Life-saving equipment has been installed in all four Northampton Leisure Trust facilities.

 Brand new Automated External Defibrillators (AED) are now available at each location and could make a huge difference in saving the life of a heart attack victim.

 Every year in the UK there are around 60,000 out-of-hospital cardiac incidents. If a defibrillator is used within three-minutes then the chances of survival can be as high as 75%. And many leading groups like the British Heart Foundation are calling for defibrillators to be available at all public locations.

 Every year there are up to a million visits to the four Leisure Trust centres, Danes Camp Leisure Centre, Lings Forum Leisure Centre, Mounts Baths and Duston Sports Centre. With so many people visiting each facility to take part in everything from squash to zumba, Northampton Leisure Trust is investing in looking after every visitor.

 Northampton Leisure Trust has extended its extensive staff first aid training programme to include use of the defibrillators. The additional training has been developed to a level that is recognised by the Health & Safety Executive, and the Trust is now accredited to offer training to others.

 Ian Redfern, managing director of Northampton Leisure Trust said: "We attract people from within our communities with a wide spectrum of age and various levels of fitness.  All the centres have a combination of appropriately and professionally trained Pool Lifeguard staff as well as professionally trained First Aid staff.  Our focus is to ensure that every customers can enjoy their activities in a safe manner.

 "Investing in the right equipment means that if there is an emergency our staff could play a crucial role in saving a life. Thankfully these situations are very rare, but our customers can be assured they will get the best possible care quickly if something unexpected happens."