GRADUATE and former air cadet Rob Strickland is looking for another eight or ten like-minded Pewsey people who would like to become ambulance first responders.

That's how many is needed for St John Ambulance to set up and train a First Responder group in Pewsey.

They will be taught the rudiments of life saving so that in the event of an emergency they can help sustain life until paramedics arrive.

This is a vital service in rural areas like Pewsey where there is frequently criticism of the time it takes ambulances to arrive.

Pewsey Parish Council is pressing the Wiltshire Ambulance NHS to improve the time it takes to get an ambulance to the village.

Mr Strickland wants to become a first responder but it needs a group of about ten people with the same interest to make it worthwhile for St John to set up a course in Pewsey.

The former Devizes air cadet, who lives at Prospect, Pewsey, said: "Ideally they want about a dozen but will be willing to start it off with half a dozen. The people from St John will train us in basic first aid including life saving."

The first responders' training includes how to use defibrillators that can re-start a heart after a coronary attack.

Mr Strickland said he had a relative who was a paramedic and he was aware that response times by ambulances to Pewsey had been the cause of concern.

He said: "First aid is something I have done before with the cadets and it's something I am interested in."

The way the first responder system works is that when someone dials 999 an ambulance is dispatched. A call is also made to a local first responder who might be just minutes away.

Mr Strickland said: "After sending an ambulance they call a first responder by mobile telephone. You don't have to go."

Each first responder group has to help raise money towards the cost of the team's first aid kit that is held by whichever member is on duty.

The life saving pack contains equipment to deal with heart conditions, falls and other home accidents, sports accidents, collapses and seizures and many other emergencies.

America, where the first responder idea was first mooted, reports an increase in the survival rate of accident or illness victims by between 25 and 30 per cent since the scheme was introduced.

Anyone interested in the scheme should call St John on (01380) 728362 or ring Mr Strickland on (01672) 562949.