MORE than 121 secondary schools across Yorkshire have signed up to receive life-saving training on European Restart a Heart Day.

Staff from the Yorkshire Ambulance Service NHS Trust (YAS) will go to the schools on Tuesday, October 18 to teach life-saving cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) to more than 25,000 children in what will be the biggest event of its kind ever seen in the world.

Jason Carlyon, Resuscitation Manager for YAS, said: “Every second counts when someone has a cardiac arrest and if a bystander immediately performs CPR, this can double the patient’s chances of survival.

He added: “The majority of cardiac arrests happen in the home so by learning CPR, these youngsters could one day save the life of someone they love. There’s no better reason to learn than that.”

Seven York schools are signed up, as well as Tadcaster Grammar, and schools in Selby, Malton, Pocklington, and across North and East Yorkshire.

YAS first did the mass training event in 2014 to mark the European Resuscitation Council’s Restart a Heart Day. Over the last two years they have taught CPR to 31,000 youngsters at 137 secondary schools, with help from the Resuscitation Council (UK), the British Heart Foundation, St John Ambulance and others.