LEIGH Rotary Club is training high school pupils to become a frontline lifesaving force.

As part of its community service to set up a First Responders' group, the club has asked St John Ambulance to teach first aid to 400 year 9 pupils at Bedford and Westleigh and it will then present them with an automatic defibrillator.

All year 9 pupils at both schools will receive training in a week-long programme of sessions. They started on June 6 at Bedford and will move to Westleigh on June 27.

They will provide the knowledge of what to do in an emergency should any of their friends, anyone in their family or the community be taken ill, choke, fall unconscious, or require resuscitation.

At the sites in Manchester Road and Westleigh Lane, the students spend a morning or afternoon undertaking the "Breath of Life" module from the St John Ambulance Greater Manchester First Aid for Schools programme.

They learn resuscitation techniques, the recovery position and unconsciousness and what to do in the event of choking.They also have an awareness session on automatic defibrillators and their importance and instruction on what to do if a friend collapses due to excess alcohol consumption.

Everyone who completes the course will receive a St John Ambulance First Aid Training certificate, presented to them after each session by a member of Leigh Rotary Club.

Julia Witter, Schools Liaison Officer at St John Ambulance Greater Manchester, said: "The importance of first aid training for these young people cannot be over emphasised. The number of lifesaving incidents that have resulted from St John Ambulance training reinforces this message."

Rotarian Gareth Cheesman, who organised and co-ordinated the project, said: "Apart from the obvious benefits of equipping the youngsters with lifesaving skills it will give them a greater sense of responsibility, confidence in knowing that they'll know what to in an emergency and recognition of the importance of defibrillators when they see them situated in the town in the near future."

St John Ambulance offers a host of first aid courses for the workplace, the community and schools and youth groups. The First Aid for Schools programme can be delivered at any time during normal school hours, during after school clubs, or in the holidays.

For more information, call the schools hotline on 0161-249-3403, or e-mail schools@gman.sja.org.uk

For volunteering opportunities with St John Ambulance in the Leigh area, call 0161-248-3601.