MORE than 70 defibrillators are set to be installed in schools, leisure centres, community centres and community hubs in East Dunbartonshire.

The life-saving equipment, to be installed in the council owned or operated premises, comes after a consultation between East Dunbartonshire Council and local people, organisations and partners.

The defibrillators, which will be installed both internally and externally to ensure 24/7 access, will see a total of 83 devices in local areas.

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Council leader Gordan Low said: "The consultation responses were overwhelmingly supportive of the proposed locations.

"We also received suggestions of other venues where we should fit the life-saving equipment, and we’re very pleased to be able to add more devices to our list.

"This will result in more than 70 defibrillators being installed over the next few months across East Dunbartonshire – a significant increase on our initial proposals.

"The evidence is clear that when defibrillators are available in emergency situations, they can be life-saving, so it’s great news that we’ll be able to install so many throughout the area and in a variety of buildings."

Local community groups and former pupils in the area have also fundraised to buy defibrillators for specific areas in recent times, and their efforts were also recognised by council.

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Councillor Low added: "The provision of defibrillators in East Dunbartonshire is a joint effort between community groups, businesses, individuals, and the council.

"The fundraising of local people including current and former pupils to provide a defibrillator for community buildings and schools has been really impressive and we will be reaching out to those individuals when the devices are ready to be installed to ensure we are working together to ensure the most effective outcome."

All new and existing defibrillators in this initiative will be registered with the National Defibrillator Network – The Circuit – and provided by the British Heart Foundation.