A HOST of stars from TV and film have come together to help a new campaign aimed at instructing parents on how to save a baby from choking.

The campaign from St John Ambulance will include a TV advert featuring the voices of David Walliams, David Mitchell, Johnny Vegas and Sir John Hurt that shows parents what to do in the event of their child choking.

The advert has been produced in response to new figures showing that more than three-quarters of parents in the South-West do not know the correct technique in what could be a life or death situation.

The statistics released by St John Ambulance show that 77% of parents across the region were unable to identify the correct action in such an event despite 57% of parents saying it is a major fear.

Steve Hargreaves (left), St John Ambulance’s Sedgemoor-based regional director, said: “Knowing what to do in an emergency can be the difference between life and death. My son choked when he was a baby and it was a horrible moment – if I hadn’t had training from St John Ambulance I might have frozen. Fortunately I knew what to do and was able to give first aid, so that he coughed up the food stuck in his throat.”

The advert will be televised over the next three months and St John Ambulance is encouraging people to share the film with friends and family online so as many people as possible can learn to save a life.

To watch the film and for more first aid advice, visit www.sja.org.uk/TheChokeables