Edinburgh group Mini First Aid Edinburgh & the Lothians launch first aid course for young children

Class due to be held in Juniper Green later this month

A first aid course for kids aged 7 to 11 will take place in Juniper Green later this month, organised by a group that wants to see more people of all ages trained up on the potentially life-saving skills.

Mini First Aid Edinburgh & the Lothians, part of a UK-wide franchise that successfully won backing on BBC show Dragons’ Den from businesswoman Sara Davies, will provide a one hour class at Pentlands Community Space on Lanark Road, on Friday, January 20 at 2pm, costing £15 per person. The group also offers baby and child first aid classes for parents, grandparents and carers, as well as first aid classes for children, training them in basic and life-saving first aid.

Lyndsey Anderson, owner of Mini First Aid Edinburgh & the Lothians, explained more about the class for 7-11 year-olds coming up later this month.

She said: “I’m a Midwife myself, and I felt it was really important to get first aid out there. Initially it was just for adults, as it’s important for parents to know how to save their kid’s life if needed, as well as how to deal with burns, cuts and breaks. I quite often hear sad stories of kids having to dial 999 in an emergency involving a loved one, so it’s good to show them some potentially life-saving first aid. I just think it’s an amazing thing to be able to do if needed.

"The class is very interactive, they will be up doing CPR on mannequins and shown how to deal with choking. Some of the other subjects we talk about are burns and bleeding and how they can use items they may have to hand in their school bag for instance to stop a bleed. We also cover breaks, showing them how to make a sling with their clothes or other items.

"It’s all about making it fun, but also giving them the information they need. They soak it up so much at that age, and it gives them the required knowledge to carry out first aid if ever needed.”

Mini First Aid Edinburgh & the Lothians runs first aid classes for kids aged as young as three.

Mini First Aid Kids classes teach life-saving first aid to children.

"I have got two teenagers myself and they go out and they are on their own, so you want them to be prepared in case they are in a situation where first aid is needed. They have both done a class,” added Lyndsey.

"Just before Christmas I went to my 14-year-old’s football team and trained the whole team on first aid. We run lots of private classes for groups like brownies, football teams and other youth groups. It’s great for the kids to have this knowledge.

"Anybody can do first aid, so the more people that know it, the better for everyone.”

The British Red Cross said that nine out of 10 adults would not be able to save a life in a first aid emergency. A statistic that Lyndsey believes shows the importance of providing her classes in Edinburgh and the Lothians.

Lyndsey Anderson from the group, with kids that passed their first aid class.

She said: “There are so many reasons that everybody should be trained on first aid. And I think that if we get kids trained on first aid it would make a huge difference, particularly if we can get it into schools. We would create a future generation of life savers.

"Mum of six, Kate Ball initially started Mini First Aid in 2014 from her kitchen table in Leeds, as her brother collapsed at university and nobody knew what to do, and he sadly died.

"There are so many people that die because people are not confident enough to do anything to save someone’s life when needed. My aim is to change this and save more lives “