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Residents from Clay Cross and the surrounding area have raised money for the installation and maintenance of defibrillators in various locations around the town.

Clay Cross’ first defibrillator stations were installed in 2016 – located at the George Pub, Clay Cross’ police and fire stations, and Holmgate’s community centre.

Responsible for their installation and upkeep was local man, Billy Mcneill.

It is a role he has always taken seriously after his wife, Tina, suffered a heart attack in December when Billy saw just how important these pieces of medical equipment can be.

Billy, Vena and some of the other fantastic fundraisers and contributors stood beside the the latest defibrillator station.

Fortunately, Tina did not require the defibrillator, but Billy was thankful to have the equipment within reach.

Billy said: “Having the defibrillator on hand is, sort of, reassuring. You feel more confident if the situation does get worse.”

He added: “After my wife’s incident I thought I needed to do something. I realised that defibrillators need to be more accessible for people than just the four we’ve already got.”

Earlier this year, Billy set up the ‘Clay Cross Defibrillator Circuit’. A local organisation raising funds for the installation of new defibrillator stations and the maintenance of those currently installed.

The organisation has already raised thousands of pounds through generous donations and fundraisers, which has been spent on two new defibrillator stations this month. The latest has been installed outside the Rykneld Turnpyke pub on John Street, as part of a plan to install at least five units this year.

Billy couldn’t be happier with the communities generous donations and fundraising efforts. One such fundraiser is Vena Shaw.

She said many people have been saved by the defibrillator units since their installation.

Vena hails Billy as an “absolute hero” for his role in the project and praised the people of Clay Cross.

"No matter what charity you want to raise funds for, the people of Clay Cross just keep on giving and giving and giving,” said Vena.

“I’m surprised by just how much money we’ve managed to raise in such a short space of time,” she added.

Details for making donations, fundraising events, and the locations of the towns defibrillator stations can be found on the Clay Cross Defibrillator Circuit’s Facebook page.

'Absolute hero' leads project to get life-saving equipment installed in Derbyshire town