BRADFORD community group launch initiative for city wide Basic Life Support Training (BLS), which could become a world first.

Saturday October 16 is Restart a Heart Day; the British Heart foundation, alongside other charities are raising awareness for Cardiac Arrests and teaching CPR.

Bradford 4 Better will mark this event with the first BLS session at Doha Mosque, calling it Bradford Lifesavers.

Dr Sohail Ahmed, Vice Chair of Bradford 4 Better, a fully qualified GP, will be leading the session.

Dr Sohail said: “This is an important life skill that everybody should have.

“We want to get as many people involved and reach as many communities as possible.”

Though Restart a heart is one day campaign, Dr Sohail and his team will be holding monthly events across the district to teach people basic life support training.

“The first event was sold out within two hours, so I think that highlights how much of a demand there is for this.

“We are offering the training for free because this training shouldn’t be dependent on whether you can afford it or not."

The initiative will develop week after week, as more people get involved.

“We want to get as many people involved as possible.

“We want to be going into schools and teaching children because it’s a skill they’ll have for the rest of their lives.

“This project is an investment.

“If we do this right, we can get this generation better prepared and equipped to save lives.”

The group will be holding sessions once a month across the district in accessible places such as community centres, youth facilities, Mosques and Churches.

As the project develops, training will be provided in a range of languages to benefit communities where English may not be the first language.

Bradford Lifesavers wants to deepen the conversation surrounding heart health and speak to BAME communities, who have higher risks of developing cardiovascular problems.

Developing the programme will be dependant on the number of people who want to learn but the project is available to everyone across the district.

“We are hoping to collaborate with schools and local organisations to host these sessions.

“This is one of my passions and I’ve been doing it for a while through the British Islamic Medical Association, in other towns, cities and countries but I want to do it Bradford.

“If this goes according to our vision and we can do district wide sessions then this really is a world first.”