More than 1,000 schools in Scotland do not have defibrillators, according to “deeply alarming” figures uncovered by the Scottish Conservatives.
Responses to Freedom of Information requests by the party reveal that 1,062 Scottish schools are missing this potentially life-saving equipment – which equates to 40 per cent across the country.
However, the true number – and proportion – is likely to be even higher as six of Scotland’s 32 councils did not respond.
In contrast, the UK Government committed to installing a defibrillator in every English school by the end of the last academic term.
Shadow education secretary Liam Kerr has slammed what he called the SNP’s “shameful neglect of Scottish schools”, which he said was “undermining the safety of pupils”.
He also urged ministers to follow the lead of their UK Government counterparts by ensuring every Scottish school has a defibrillator installed as soon as possible.
Scottish Conservative shadow cabinet secretary for education Liam Kerr MSP said: “It is deeply alarming that so many schools in Scotland are lacking life-saving defibrillators.
“This is another example of the SNP’s shameful neglect of Scottish schools – and one which risks undermining the safety of pupils.
“The SNP Government must urgently get a grip of this matter. If it’s a funding issue, they must stump up the money needed for councils to install defibrillators in all schools.
“We know that defibrillators greatly increase the chance of survival from cardiac arrest so the importance of these devices – especially close to school sport halls and playing fields – cannot be overemphasised.
“The SNP should immediately follow the lead of the UK Government and commit to installing defibrillators in every Scottish school as soon as possible.”
Notes
More than 1,000 schools do not have life-saving defibrillators. Scottish Conservative research revealed that 4 in 10 (1,062) Scottish schools do not have life-saving defibrillators onsite. Six councils either did not respond or were unable to provide the relevant information. (FOI available upon request).
The UK Government successfully rolled out over 20,000 defibrillators ensuring every English school had a defibrillator. In July 2022, the UK Government committed to delivering these devices before the end of the 2022/23 academic year to ensure that all state funded schools in England had access to a defibrillator. In June, the UK Government successfully completed the roll-out ensuring every eligible primary, special and alternative provision schools who did not already have a defibrillator have received one. (UK Government, 25 July 2023, link).