A teenage first aider who leapt into action when he saw a road crash is urging Leicester Mercury readers to learn basic skills that could save someone's life – for as little as £10.
Hayden Beszant rushed to help when he came across a collision between a car and a motorcycle earlier this year.
The 18-year-old was the only person on the scene who had first aid training and immediately took control of the situation.
After assessing both the motorcyclist and the incident, Hayden realised the rider could have sustained damage to his spine.
He knew exactly what he needed to do to prevent the casualty suffering even more serious injuries.
Now Hayden is urging people to back the Mercury's Save A Life campaign, which gives readers the chance to become potential life-savers for as little as £10.
The Mercury and St John Ambulance have joined forces to offer two and three-hour first aid courses at a discount rate at venues across Leicestershire.
We are hoping to reach hundreds of people through the campaign.
Hayden, a college student from Aylestone, Leicester, said: "I knew straight away that I needed to help.
"As a St John Ambulance first aider, I obviously wanted to be able to use my skills to help the person."
Urging others to sign up for a Save A Life course, he said: "I think first aid is a vital skill that everyone should have."
Over the coming weeks we will be telling the stories of people of all ages who have used their first aid skills to give emergency help to a friend, colleague or stranger. We will also feature stories of people who have had their lives saved.
Carl Makins, training manager for St John Ambulance, said: "Up to 140,000 people die every year in situations where first aid could have given them a chance to live.
"We are committed to making sure no one dies through a lack of first aid training and hope many more will come on one of our courses to learn life-saving skills.
"First aid can help in many situations. However, we want people to be prepared to act in at least five common scenarios where basic techniques can directly affect whether someone lives or dies."
Mercury editor Richard Bettsworth said: "We are delighted to be teaming up with St John Ambulance to launch this campaign.
"None of us know when we might find ourselves in a situation where we'd have a chance to save somebody's life or when we might need someone to help us. Learning first aid means more people will be able to answer that call should it come."
LEARN VITAL TECHNIQUES: How to get involved in campaign The Leicester Mercury and St John Ambulance are offering readers discounts on two courses run by the charity. The first is Essential First Aid, a two-hour course which usually costs £25 but which Mercury readers can join for £10 with this voucher. Essential First Aid includes hands-on demonstrations of how to deal with a range of emergency situations such as choking, severe bleeding and chest pains, CPR resuscitation for adult casualties and what to do when you are faced with a person who is unconscious. The second course is Essential First Aid (All Ages), a three-hour course which usually costs £25 but which Mercury readers can take part in for £15. The training covers everything included in the two-hour course, but also covers CPR for children and babies, as well as adults. The courses are being run at St John Ambulance training centres in Leicester, Loughborough, Market Harborough and Coalville.• For your token to claim cut-price first aid courses, and for more information about the courses, see today's Leicester Mercury.• Related article: Hayden's story: As others stood by, I saw what I had to do
