People urged to 'Outrun an Ambulance' to raise money for charity
Money raised will help fund volunteer community first responders at the South Central Ambulance Service, which serves Berkshire and Hampshire
South Central Ambulance Charity is urging people in Berkshire and Hampshire to take part in a virtual fundraising challenge to cover more miles than an emergency ambulance does in a single shift – and help support the volunteer Community First Responder and Co-Responder programme.
It follows a successful inaugural ‘Outrun an Ambulance’ event last year where participants raised more than £13,000 for the charity which was put towards keeping some of South Central Ambulance Service (SCAS) NHS Foundation Trust’s 1,200 responders equipped.
Volunteer responders are members of the public trained to support the ambulance service primarily by attending medical emergencies and sometimes providing lifesaving first aid to patients before paramedics arrive.
They also assist with ongoing patient care at the scene and attend more than 30,000 incidents every year. They are funded solely by South Central Ambulance Charity, which provides equipment, training and is responsible for the vehicle fleet of 51.
This year the challenge will focus on supporting six regional ambulance charities, with participants able to visit a dedicated website and select their area or go direct to their chosen JustGiving page.
People can choose the distance they want to do based on the mileage clocked up by crews during the course of a typical shift across Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Hampshire and Oxfordshire (ambulance stations and associated mileages listed online).
Fundraisers can choose their timeframe - up to a maximum of three months - to ‘outrun’ the distance by at least one mile. From Wexham in the South who cover 70 miles in an average shift to Milton Keynes in the North covering 150 miles, there is a range to suite everyone.
People can walk, run, swim, scoot, cycle or ride anything that is self-propelled to achieve their goal and it is designed for all abilities, with the option to take part as an individual or as part of a team.
“Our ambulance staff and volunteers really are going the extra mile every shift of every day to keep us all safe during these challenging times,” said Vanessa Casey, Chief Executive of South Central Ambulance Charity.
“Now we are asking others to help us to again go the extra mile for them and the communities they serve by taking on the ‘Outrun an Ambulance’ challenge.
“Last year we saw a fantastic return of more than £13,000 which was used to support the ongoing costs of our 1,200 volunteer Community First Responder and Co-Responders.
“It costs around £300 per responder per year to keep them equipped with essentials such as smartphone line rentals for the app that deploys CFRs to incidents, batteries for defibrillators to support patients in cardiac arrest and observation kits, as well as our vehicles.”
The Outrun an Ambulance idea was originally conceived by Emergency Care Assistant Shannon Witts from South Western Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust.
While shielding during the pandemic, she and her family rose to the challenge by outrunning the total mileage of three ambulance stations in the Gloucestershire area in aid of the South Western Ambulance Charity.