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<p>Department officials met with the British Heart Foundation (BHF) and NHS England
in November 2023 to discuss access to Automated External Defibrillators (AEDs) and
AED cabinets. Officials also attended a workshop co-hosted by the BHF and NHS England
in January 2024, on the same issue.</p><p>To improve survival rates for out-of-hospital
cardiac arrest cases, the Government launched a new £1 million one-off fund that will
expand community access to AEDs. The grant was made available from September 2023.
We estimated 1,000 new defibrillators would be provided by the fund, with the potential
for this to double as most applicants would be asked to match the funding they receive
partially or fully. To date, the grant has successfully delivered 2,000 AEDs.</p><p>Applications
for AEDs are selected in line with criteria to provide AEDs where there is greatest
need. The criteria include remote communities with extended ambulance response times,
places with high footfall and high population densities, hotspots for cardiac arrest
including sporting venues and venues with vulnerable people, and deprived areas.</p>
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