PRIMARY school children marked National Restart a Heart Day last week by unveiling their very own defibrillator.

Lanner Primary School decided to raise the funds for a defibrillator last term, with two of the school’s teaching assistants, Mrs Staples and Mrs Kalbar, running a half marathon and donating all of the proceeds to the effort.

They set an initial target of £800 and this enthused the children into raising funds themselves with everything from cake sales to sponsored runs.

In fact, it was the sponsored run that saw the children and families of Lanner Primary School raise the most amount of money.

The target of £800 was smashed, allowing the school to buy the latest defibrillator on the market as well as a safe external case, which is now proudly located by the main entrance to the school.

The beauty of the external casing is that it now means all the community can benefit and use the defibrillator even when the school is closed.

The school has been liaising closely with Lanner Parish Council, which has been fundraising for two or three defibrillators around the village, in particular Chris Bosworth, who has been into Lanner School on several occasions and has worked closely with the school.

Kieran Walsh, the headteacher at Lanner School, said that he was blown away by the generosity of the families.

He added: “We are blessed to have such supportive parents and always thought that we would get near to our target.

"I was not expecting us to raise so much money in such a short period of time.

"In fact, we have money left over which our school council are now deciding what to spend it on.

"This really struck a chord with a lot of families and whilst we all hope we never have to actually use the defibrillator, it is very reassuring to know it is here."

The school is now in the process of training all staff members. In addition, it has been working alongside Luke Tudor, a local paramedic who is also part of the charity Coast Medic, who helped the school purchase the equipment.

Luke came into the school to deliver training to all of the KS2 children as well as raising the awareness of first aid.

He said: “Children at Lanner School receive Heart Start training every year, which is fantastic. Now they have the extra addition of having a defibrillator on site."