Residents in Rye have been gathering at Ground Up on Fishmarket Road on Monday evenings for an important and potentially life-saving session on defibrillator use and CPR, delivered by the dedicated volunteers of Rother Responders and The Rye Chauffeur. George Thompson has been a first aid instructor for twenty years.
The sessions were organised with a clear aim — empowering more people in Rye to act confidently in a cardiac emergency. Attendees learned how to recognise the signs of cardiac arrest, perform effective chest compressions and use an automated external defibrillator (AED) — a portable device that can restore a normal heart rhythm. Defibrillators talk users through every step, and you cannot harm a patient by using one incorrectly.
Tracy Pepler, Rother Responders Team Lead explained, “We want people in the community to feel confident in stepping up to save a life. We’d love to have every person in Rye and the villages confident in these skills.”
Anthony and Elizabeth Kimber attended the session on Monday 16 February and commented, " By chance we learnt of George's free CPR event at Esther's Ground Up cafe. One cold and wet February evening, we spent a very valuable two hours learning about CPR and defibrillators. Both of us came away feeling very confident about the life saving procedures. When we see defibrillators in future we will instantly recall the acronym DRSABCD (Danger, Response, Send for Help, Airway, Breathing, CPR and Defibrillation)."
Another attendee commented after the session, “Learning CPR and how to use a defibrillator isn’t just a skill — it’s empowerment. It teaches us that we can all help save a life, and that acting quickly and confidently could make all the difference. In a town like Rye, knowing we look after one another like this says so much about our community.”
Helen via Facebook posted, “Thank you for a great training session. It refreshed what I had done on previous first aid courses. Very informative and fun as well.”Michelle, local business owner at Poundfield Cottages via Facebook, “It was so good to refresh and learn again, lots has changed. I now feel confident having familiarised myself with a defib and chest compressions.”George emphasised the broader goal: “We are building not just skills, but confidence and connection. If more of us know what to do in an emergency, we don’t just improve outcomes — we also strengthen this town’s spirit.”
With more sessions planned, organisers hope even more residents — young and old — will take part and help make Rye one of the safest communities in the region.
Anybody can use a public access defibrillator. In Rye they are located at:
- Udimore Road phone box
- Rye Leisure Centre
- Rye train station
- Cinque Ports pub
- The George
- Rye Heritage Centre
- Rye Lawn Tennis Club
- Rye Cricket Club
- Tilling Green
- Valley Park
There is one more session on Monday 23 February in this series of sessions.
To register your interest in the next group of sessions, email George, info@theryechauffeur.co.uk
Why it matters: key UK heart emergency statistics
- In the UK, there are over 30,000 out-of-hospital cardiac arrests every year, and tragically less than 1 in 10 people survive without intervention.
- When a public defibrillator is used quickly — especially within 3–5 minutes of collapse — survival rates can increase dramatically, even up to 50–70 % in some studies.
- Despite their importance, public-access defibrillators are used in fewer than one in 10 cardiac arrest cases in the community.