The Leighton Buzzard Community First Responder Group (CFRs) supports the communities in Leighton Buzzard, Dunstable, Houghton Regis and surrounding villages by providing life-saving medical assistance in the first vital minutes before an ambulance arrives. We attend emergencies such as cardiac arrests, breathing difficulties, strokes and diabetic emergencies.

Our volunteers have all been trained by the Ambulance Trust and hold national qualifications to manage immediate medical situations and provide advanced care beyond basic first aid. However, as locals, we are likely to provide a faster response than the ambulance service and so we can play a pivotal role in enhancing patient outcomes, especially in cases of cardiac arrest, where timely intervention significantly impacts survival rates.

In addition to our frontline roles, we also provide awareness training for groups, Parish Councils etc in CPR and automated external defibrillator (AED) use, provide community education talks and undertake other activities too.

Most CFR Groups, including those in the East of England, receive basic initial funding from the Ambulance Trust and then rely heavily on the generosity of the community they serve to meet their ongoing needs, particularly to fund the purchase of the equipment needed to provide that life-saving support.

It costs around £3500 (2025) to equip each volunteer and with the significant housing developments in our area we need not just to grow the size of our group but be able to equip each responder too.

If you are interested in joining our group and training as a CFR then please visit www.eastamb.nhs.uk (and follow the links to ‘Join the team’ and ‘Volunteering’) to learn more or email cfr@eastamb.nhs.uk

However, in order to ensure the continued operation of our group we do rely on the generosity of the community we serve, through donations from individuals, Town/Parish Council’s, local businesses and other community groups.

99% of every £1 you donate goes towards purchasing the essential equipment that we need to save lives in the communities we serve and all the donations we receive go solely to supporting our community and the people in it.

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