Culcheth Linear Park has just gained something far more useful than another laminated notice telling people not to do the obvious. A new defibrillator has been installed outside the Ranger Cabin, available 24 hours a day, and that is genuinely excellent news for anyone who walks, runs, cycles, volunteers, dog-wrangles or has a quiet breather there.
The life-saving equipment was donated by the Rotary Club of Culcheth and District after a request from the Friends of Culcheth Linear Park. Credit where it is due, this is exactly the sort of practical community support that actually matters, not just another photo opportunity with people pointing at a plaque.
Alastair Baker, chairman of the Friends of Culcheth Linear Park, said they had been considering hosting a defibrillator for some time and were very grateful to the Rotary Club for the gesture. Quite right too. Having one in the park makes plain common sense, especially in a place used by so many people across Culcheth and beyond.
The cabinet also includes a bleed control kit, which is a serious and welcome addition. It is registered on the National Defibrillator Network, and anyone who needs to use it can get the access code by calling 999, which also alerts the emergency services. The defibrillator is portable, so it can be taken directly to someone in trouble within the park.
David Smithson, president of the Rotary Club of Culcheth and District, said the club aims to support local communities and that this was a fitting way to help Culcheth Linear Park and the people who use it. He also pointed out that access to a defibrillator can dramatically improve someone’s chance of survival during a cardiac emergency. That is not local do-goodery fluff, that is hard reality.
He added that the Rotary Club has its big Christmas fundraiser coming up in December, with Santa on his sleigh touring Culcheth, Croft, Glazebury and Winwick. So when people put a few quid in the bucket, this is the sort of thing it can become, useful kit in a public place rather than vague warm feelings and a mince pie hangover.
There was also, rather oddly, a note attached to the original report saying it came via an exclusive subscriber partnership with sister title USA Today, written by American colleagues, and that it does not necessarily reflect the view of The Herald. Which is a lot of transatlantic admin for a defibrillator outside the Ranger Cabin, but there we are. The important bit is local, clear and worthwhile.
The Warrington Guardian report by Tabitha Wilson also sat alongside the usual related bits about a Warrington care village operator being named Operator of the Year, Warrington residents being warned about a water bottle habit, and a new luxury care home in Great Sankey with a cinema and salon. All very well, but in Culcheth Linear Park, the headline is simpler: a vital piece of emergency equipment is now where people may one day urgently need it.