MEDICAL professionals from across Monmouthshire have come together to teach children how to save lives with first aid skills.

Dr Katie Walbeoff, Dr Emma Baker, Dr Charlotte Thomas and Dr Catherine Grose have set up the charity Little Life Savers Monmouthshire, and thanks to a £500 grant from Monmouthshire Housing Association they are almost ready to get underway.

Dr Baker said the group wanted to create a Monmouthshire branch to the charity which began in 2016.

She said: “It (Little Life Savers) was originally set up by a doctor in West Sussex during the junior doctors strike, they wanted to give something back to the community while they were on strike.

“Children are so good at picking up things if you show them what to do. So a few of us in Monmouthshire were quite keen to get it going, at the moment there are four of us and we will see how many more we can get interested.”

The group will visit children of various ages in a number of places from schools to community groups.

Dr Baker said: “We go around to schools, sports clubs and groups like Scouts and Brownies and split them up into little groups. We teach the children how to deal with choking and how to put someone in the recovery position and hands only CPR.

“It also includes the basics of how to deal with someone who is unwell and the basics of getting help and starting treatment.”

According to Dr Baker even young children are receptive to what Little Life Savers is trying to teach and even if they can take away the most basic of techniques then it could save a life.

She said: “Kids don’t have fear, they just get on and do what they have been shown, and teaching skills from a young ages has a massive impact and is proven to save lives.

“Even if they don’t know exactly what to do, it is still a grounding and it might also spark an interest in learning more about medicine and working in the NHS.”

The grant will go towards buying a mannequin for children to use but the group is trying to raise money for at least one more.

There will be a Little Life Savers free session held on Sunday 15th April at Sprokwobbles in Usk from 2pm to 4pm.

Families are welcome to attend and learn some life saving skills and hear about what the group does, there will also be some fundraising.

For more information email [email protected] with the subject line ’Monmouthshire’.