Having pledged its support to Welsh Hearts as its Charity of the Year, Welsh law firm, JCP Solicitors, has installed its first defibrillator in Haverfordwest town centre, via the life-saving charity.

JCP Solicitors’ Staff Community Group chose Welsh Hearts as its charity of the year for a 12-month period back in July 2018 – with the intention of enabling the charity to install a defibrillator within each of the nine communities where JCP has an office.

This week it donated its first defibrillator to the people of Haverfordwest, with the invaluable equipment now sited outside the JCP office, in Merlin’s Court Business Centre.

Welsh Hearts is well known for placing more than 1,300 defibrillators in public and communal spaces – from rugby grounds and pubs, to libraries and churches – within communities across Wales, in a drive to safeguard people at risk of premature death from cardiovascular disease.

Over the past seven months JCP has organised a host of fundraising events, including raffles and social get-togethers, with prizes donated from local businesses. So the Welsh Hearts fundraising drive has been very much a local affair.

Ian Fudge,  Haverfordwest resident and JCP Director, who works at JCP’s Haverfordwest office, said:

“We are very pleased to see the first new defibrillator being installed in Haverfordwest, in support of the work carried out by Welsh Hearts. As a community-based business we are happy to get behind this great charity.”

Welsh Hearts has also attended JCP offices to train staff on how to use the equipment.

Cardiovascular disease accounts for a third of all deaths in Wales, where the death rate is higher than in the majority of countries in Western Europe. And Welsh Hearts is the leading heart charity in Wales for siting defibrillators in communities and delivering CPR and defibrillator training.

Ian Butherway of ETTS Ltd donated his time to install the life-saving piece of equipment.