A lifesaving Bury charity will be holding a free family fun day next month.

Restart The Heart is hosting the event at Whitehead Park on Sunday, July 23 as they work to fund more defibrillators for the borough.

The event, which takes place at the start of the summer holidays, will have a beer tent, cocktail bar, craft stalls, tombola, food, face painting and wellbeing and first aid training sessions.

Charity founder Sarah Jones, said: “Defibs have had a significant price increase since last year and it really does make our job so much harder because we’re having to raise so much more.

“It can be difficult but one of our machines recently saved someone’s life and it just goes to show that they are necessary.

Bury Times: Restart The Heart are hosting a family fun day at Whitehead Park Restart The Heart are hosting a family fun day at Whitehead Park (Image: public)

“We didn’t know if they would be used, we hoped they wouldn’t need to be, but the reality is that if that defib wasn’t in that location at that time, things may not have turned out this way.”

Funds for Restart the Heart will be raised during the free-to-attend family fun day.

St John Ambulance will also attend to teach first aid and CPR training.

Those interested in having a stall will pay for the patch but are able to keep all revenues for themselves, something Sarah said she was keen to do in order to continue helping local businesses.

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Sarah said: “I want to thank our chairman, Andrew Luxton, treasurer, Chris Baron and secretary, Ian Strachan, because without their support and help what we are doing would not be possible.”

Bury Times: (Left to right) David McNally from NWAS, Andrew Luxton, Landlord of the Lamb, Sara Jones, and Cllr Rydeheard (Left to right) David McNally from NWAS, Andrew Luxton, Landlord of the Lamb, Sara Jones, and Cllr Rydeheard (Image: public)

Sarah started raising money to buy more defibrillators in 2021 for the Ramsbottom area after watching footballer Christian Eriksen suffer a cardiac arrest on the pitch for Denmark in the Euros in 2021. 

The first fundraiser raised a significant amount of money and the second raised enough to buy and install 12 defibrillators.

Following this, two more events raised enough money to purchase a further 16 defibrillators giving a total of 28 defibrillators.

Having gained expertise from her work in Ramsbottom, Sara said she wanted to "reach further afield" and made the decision to start an independent charity with a wider scope, Restart The Heart.

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