Community defibrillator installed at M&S St Helens Ravenhead

The potentially life-saving device is part of the retailer's nationwide initiative to equip its stores with defibrillators.

M&S is collaborating with the British Heart Foundation, the Resuscitation Council UK, St John Ambulance, and NHS ambulance services to register all their devices on The Circuit, the national defibrillator network.

The Circuit is a resource that maps defibrillators across the UK, helping ambulance services find the nearest registered defibrillator when a bystander calls 999 for a cardiac arrest.

According to the British Heart Foundation, more than 30,000 out-of-hospital cardiac arrests occur in the UK each year, and every minute without CPR and defibrillation reduces the chance of survival by up to 10 per cent.

Micheal Collins, store manager at M&S St Helens Ravenhead, said: "Time is of the essence when responding to a cardiac arrest and we want to do anything we can to help and support the local community.

"It is great to be working with the British Heart Foundation to connect with our local ambulance service and all of our first aiders in-store are CPR trained."

The British Heart Foundation, one of M&S's Sparks partners, has received more than £80,000 from M&S since June 2020.

This money has helped to fund research breakthroughs, clinical trials, and essential CPR training.

Judy O’Sullivan, director of health innovation programmes at the British Heart Foundation, said: "We’re thrilled to be working with M&S to register their defibrillators onto The Circuit – this could help save lives in years to come.

"By ensuring the location of nearby defibrillators are visible to ambulance services in the ultimate medical emergency, M&S is providing an invaluable service to communities across the UK."