A DEFIBRILLATOR has recently been set up at Craig-y-Don Croquet Club’s premises at Craig-y-Don Sports and Community Centre.

The defibrillator was placed in an external cabinet at the site on Queen’s Road, and listed on the British Heart Foundation (BHF)’s National Defibrillator Network, on March 10.

Club chairman, John Hannah, said: “Cardiac arrests are much in the news, with the wish that sports clubs in particular should have defibrillators available for members with accessibility to local residents.

“As this was not the case for Craig-y-Don Sports and Community Centre, it was decided that the croquet club should have its own externally-sited defibrillator, available 24/7 for croquet, winter bowls members and local residents.

“Fundraising began in October 2021, and the £1,600 needed was raised through crowdfunding via JustGiving and another ‘Magic Little Grant’ of £500 from the ‘Localgiving’ charity.”

According to the BHF, to help someone who is in cardiac arrest effectively, a defibrillator needs to be found as quickly as possible.

For every minute it takes for the defibrillator to reach someone and deliver a shock, their chances of survival reduce.

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The installation of the defibrillator arrives just ahead of the club’s 10th anniversary, which it celebrates this spring.

Its other recent charitable efforts include raising £12,000 to the spent on renovating the centre’s garden and twin composting toilets.

Last winter, members also renovated its equipment trolleys and gloss-painted its competition hoops thanks to a £500 grant from Sport Wales, so the club and equipment are in excellent condition for the start of its 2022 season on April 1.

A public meeting in April 2012 brought croquet interest from more than 30, and a club was formed with loaned equipment from the Croquet Association based in Cheltenham.

After four years of operation, the club was adopted as a full partner within the Craig-y-Don Sports and Community Centre. Since then, the club has grown, with nearly 60 members before the COVID-19 pandemic.

In its decade of operation, it has raised enough money from grants, membership fees and event income to build a modest clubhouse and three equipment stores.

In addition, it now owns four complete sets of croquet equipment, which allows up to 32 players to play; though, the four lawns provided are all under regulation size in length-to-width ratio.

Anyone interested in joining the club can email John Hannah at: johmhannah@gmail.com.