Royal Life Saving Society UK (RLSS UK) calls on leisure operators nationwide to participate in this October’s Restart a Heart campaign - the nationwide initiative to improve survival rates from out-of-hospital cardiac arrests.
Each year, approximately 30,000 people suffer an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest – that’s around 84 individuals every day. But survival rates are low, with just one in ten people recovering*.
RLSS UK is a long-term partner of the Resuscitation Council UK (RCUK), which leads the annual Restart a Heart campaign. This year, RLSS UK is extending its involvement beyond promoting the campaign to actively encouraging operators and the broader leisure industry to unite on 16 October to teach CPR to their customers, local community and new audiences.
Nick Grazier, Senior Head of Commercial at RLSS UK, said: “Anyone can be affected by a cardiac arrest at any time. Without immediate action, the person will die. Almost half of UK adults (43 per cent) have never learned CPR, yet many sports and physical activity professionals are trained to teach these techniques. Restart a Heart on 16 October is a valuable opportunity to deliver these life-saving skills to new and existing customers and help improve cardiac arrest survival rates across the UK.”
Andy Read, former Head of Safety at Places Leisure, is a leading figure in UK swimming pool safety management. He served on the ukactive Governance and Standards Committee, was Chair of the Leisure Expert Panel, and an independent member of the RLSS UK Operator Group. He commented, “At Places Leisure, I oversaw the rollout of defibrillators across more than 150 leisure centres in the early 2000s, never imagining I would one day need one myself. In August 2018, my life was saved with four shocks from a defibrillator. That is why supporting Restart a Heart on 16 October means so much to me.”
After his cardiac arrest, Read helped establish Sudbury Defibrillators, now a nationally registered charity dedicated to increasing public access to defibrillators. He chairs this charity.
RLSS UK has produced many resources to make it as easy as possible for sports and leisure operators to organise training events and run engaging sessions for people of all ages and abilities. Accessed via a dedicated webpage: www.rlss.org.uk/restart-a-heart-resources, these include an information video for display in reception areas, wallet-sized cards detailing how to perform CPR, editable posters to promote activities, customisable social media graphics, a sample press release, and social media posts.
“Operators are always looking for new ways to reach and engage new audiences. Hosting a Restart a Heart training session this October is a perfect way for facilities to demonstrate their commitment to community safety and wellbeing, connect with new audiences and give people the skills to save lives,” added Nick Grazier.
Restart a Heart takes place on 16 October 2025, and events will run throughout the month to celebrate the campaign. For more information or to get involved, contact marketing@rlss.org.uk.
*British Heart Foundation
Notes to Editors
For over 130 years, the Royal Life Saving Society UK (RLSS UK) has been sharing its expertise in water safety, lifesaving, and lifeguarding to help everyone enjoy water safely. On average, 328 people accidentally lose their lives to drowning each year in the UK and Ireland.
The RLSS UK aims to prevent these tragedies through high-quality water safety education. As the leading provider of lifesaving and lifeguarding training and water safety education in the UK and Ireland, RLSS UK has significantly contributed to public safety.
In 2025, over 2,400,000 children received water safety education through our free downloadable resources during Drowning Prevention Week. This national campaign raises awareness about water safety to reduce the number of accidental drownings each year and supports families affected by drowning incidents. Next year’s campaign will take place from 13-20 June 2026.
In schools, more than 8,000 children completed our class-based Water Smart Schools programme in 2024. This initiative aims to provide access to water safety lessons for children from all communities and backgrounds.
RLSS UK awards and programmes teach a range of lifesaving skills, including life support (CPR), water survival, and rescue techniques. Each year, we award over 160,000 lifesaving qualifications. Our programmes include Rookie Lifeguard (aimed at ages eight to 12), National Lifesaving Academy (NLA) (for ages 12 and up), Save a Baby's Life (a free course for parents and caregivers of young children), and our suite of First Aid Essentials courses.
RLSS UK also awards more pool lifeguard qualifications than any other provider in the UK. Each year, around 40,000 individuals qualify with our internationally recognised National Pool Lifeguard Qualification (NPLQ). Currently, approximately 80,000 RLSS UK qualified lifeguards are operating across the UK. On average, RLSS UK lifeguards prevent one likely in-water accident every six minutes.
For more information and interview/spokesperson opportunities, contact Kelly Key at kellykey@rlss.org.uk or call 0300 323 0096.
