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North Ayrshire Council Champions AED Awareness on Restart a Heart Day

Council highlights its network of defibrillators and supports national initiative to improve cardiac arrest survival rates.

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North Ayrshire Council is actively promoting its extensive network of Automated External Defibrillators (AEDs) across its six localities, coinciding with Restart a Heart Day 2026.

The council is raising awareness of the 117 Automated External Defibrillators (AEDs) available throughout its six localities as part of the annual Restart a Heart Day initiative. Led by Resuscitation Council UK, the day aims to boost survival rates from out-of-hospital cardiac arrests by encouraging more people to learn cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR).
AEDs, also known as defibrillators, are portable medical devices that can restart a person's heart during a sudden cardiac arrest by delivering an electric shock. Residents can find their nearest AED location via the North Ayrshire Council AED register.
Councillor Alan Hill, Cabinet Member for Communities, Housing and Islands, stated: “North Ayrshire Council is proud to support Restart a Heart Day and use the awareness day to raise the profile of our AED network across our six localities. Thank you to our Community Resources colleagues for leading this corporate work, which has placed the Council in a much stronger position.” He highlighted efforts including developing guidance, registering AEDs on the British Heart Foundation Circuit, securing funding, establishing a procurement framework, and enabling third sector organisations to host AEDs on Council buildings.
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"It is encouraging to also learn that in North Ayrshire, the average retrieval time for a defibrillator is now 5 mins 24 secs compared to 8.4 minutes. The Community Resources team has been incremental in supporting the Council’s efforts to move 14 of its AEDs to external cabinets so that they provide 24/7 unrestricted access and are set to move an additional 21 to external cabinets by the end of this financial year. Work will also continue to support the training of colleagues and residents alike who want to become Resus Ready and confident in the use of AEDs and CPR to save a life."

Councillor Alan Hill · Cabinet Member for Communities, Housing and Islands
In addition to the Council’s website AED Register, all North Ayrshire Council-owned defibrillators are listed on The Circuit, a British Heart Foundation locator tool designed to assist emergency services and the public in finding the nearest UK AED.
Based on information from the official source: North Ayrshire Council (16/10/2026)

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