A CHURCH centre in Kidderminster has installed lifesaving equipment thanks to an initiative from a Kidderminster county councillor.

A defibrillator has been installed on the outside of St Ambrose Parish Centre, adjacent to the school and church car park off Leswell Street.

Parishioners took up the challenge to help raise funds for the equipment after Councillor Fran Oborski offered £500 from her county council divisional fund to organisations to provide the equipment.

She said: “This initiative will lead to three, twenty four hour accessible defibrillators being installed on buildings within the east of Kidderminster.

“With the support of installation by Severn Group, the first defibrillator is now commissioned on the outside of the Parish Centre.

“Further Defibrillators will be installed at The Cavalier Public House on Offmore and the Station Inn Farfield”

Hadrian Garner, business development manager Severn Group, said: “The use of electricity to restart the heart is amazing and in many cases is a life changing experience for the patient and witnesses to the incident.

“Before I worked for Severn Group I was a police officer in Birmingham and I have witnessed a member of the public being brought back to life in front of his family by the ambulance crew using a defibrillator.

“Now this equipment has come down in price and companies and organisations need to consider can they afford to not have one?”