More than 300 St Andrew’s First Aid volunteers will benefit from new uniforms for the Glasgow 2018 European Championships and beyond, thanks to a major funding boost.
Scotmid Co-operative has renewed its partnership deal with St Andrew’s First Aid, Scotland’s only dedicated first aid charity and will provide substantial funding for new uniforms, which will be allocated over a three year period.
The move will enable the organisation to kit out new and existing volunteers, many of whom will be involved in the upcoming Games, as part of St Andrew’s role as official first aid supplier. Over the course of the 10-day sporting event, volunteers will be stationed at a number of venues, providing the highest level of first aid support and assistance to both spectators and athletes.
Scotmid has been a major supporter of St Andrew’s First Aid since the company first donated £75,000 in 2015. This latest donation follows a funding boost made in 2017 to the charity’s Cycle Squad, for 15 new bikes along with new uniforms, safety equipment and video cameras to assist with recording incidents for training purposes.
Stuart Callison, chief executive of St Andrew’s First Aid, said: “The continued support from Scotmid is critically important in our dedication to provide Scotland with the highest levels of trained first aiders. Our ambition to further grow our reach, through the delivery of such resources as the cycle squad, is supported by this partnership. Our volunteers will wear their uniforms with pride during the European Championships and beyond, bringing peace of mind to the thousands of people expected to attend.
“Scotmid’s sponsorship has already helped us deliver a number of benefits for people across the country and we remain greatly appreciative of their involvement with the charity.”
Scotmid Vice President, Jim Watson, said: “This is a great opportunity for Scotmid to celebrate our great association with St Andrew’s First Aid. The work the charity does is absolutely incredible, helping to make a life-changing difference in local communities across Scotland.
“Since our association started in November 2015, Scotmid has managed to help St Andrew’s First Aid by providing the new volunteer uniforms and we look forward to continuing that for the next three years.
“We’re proud that our ongoing association with St Andrew’s First Aid continues to go from strength to strength. We share the same ethos and want to make a difference to people’s lives in Scotland.”
St Andrew’s First Aid already boasts an 1100 strong team of adult volunteers and 350+ youth volunteers who attend around 1800 events each year, spanning the length and breadth of the country. From premier league football matches to scale music concerts, community events to charity races, the team give up nearly 67,000 hours of their time each year helping to ensure that Scotland’s general public are kept safe.
The European Championships are expected to see around 3,000 athletes take part in six sports over an 11-day celebration. Attendances of more than 250,000 are expected across 12 venues, with a potential TV audience of more than one billion. With more than 130 years’ experience in training and delivering first aid skills, the charity is well placed to ensure everyone attending the Championships will be in the safest hands.
