Our Defibrillator Partners: The Oliver King Foundation

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At Rainbow Restoration UK, we are dedicated to prioritising others’ welfare, viewing the restoration of lives in peril not just as a job, but as an essential duty we must uphold. It feels fitting to now be supporting a cause that shares similar values, and there is truly no charity that deserves our support more than The Oliver King Foundation.

During our campaign to purchase a defibrillator for Central Office, we discovered the Oliver King Foundation, which presented itself as a perfect opportunity to support both a charity and our colleagues. What we were not expecting, was the touching speech Mark King delivered on the heart-breaking yet inspiring journey they had endured, which left a profound impact on every individual that attended the defibrillator training session.

The foundation was created after Mark and his family suffered the devastating loss of their 12 year old boy Oliver King. Oliver unknowingly had a hidden heart condition, Sudden Arrhythmic Death Syndrome (SADS), which caused a cardiac arrest during a school swimming race.

Following this tragic incident, Mark King and his family discovered the alarming statistic than an estimated 270 children die every year in the UK as a result of SADS. In the wake of this traumatic event, they courageously channelled their grief into a noble endeavour, striving to ensure that no family has to endure the same pain.

The Oliver King Foundation is dedicated to raising awareness and access to defibrillators, offering training, and providing first aid guidance. As of 2023, they have successfully placed 6,200 defibrillators across the UK and trained 135,000 candidates.

Defibrillators are a vital life-line for those suffering a heart emergency, with figures published by the London Ambulance Service showing when a Public Access Defibrillator was used to deliver just one shock to a patient, the survival rate increased by 57.1%

Through their charitable efforts alone, The Oliver King Foundation is aware of 71+ lives saved so far in the years between the inception of the foundation in 2012 and 2023. However, the Foundation’s commitment and determination extends far beyond these accomplishments.

Valiantly advocating for support from UK citizens and parliament, the overarching goal was to improve access to defibrillators across the country. With the help of a petition boasting over 110,000 signatures, and the backing of numerous parliamentarians, they have successfully achieved several commendable milestones.

In 2022, the Secretary of State for Education granted approval for a defibrillator to be installed in every state run school within the UK, and between January and July 2023 over 20,500 defibrillators were successfully distributed. The foundation is now looking at opening their own ECG testing center, to conduct screenings for the condition.

We cannot imagine the pain experienced by the family in the loss of young Oliver King, but are deeply honoured to stand by them, supporting both their journey and their cause.

Inspired by the successful launch of the defibrillator in Central Office and Oliver’s story, we are delighted to announce the implementation of fitting every van across our entire UK network with this life-saving device. The invaluable support of The Oliver King Foundation has been instrumental in making this initiative a reality within our network.

Whether you’re an employee, customer, passer-by, or anyone else, rest assured that our fleet of vans will be equipped to provide immediate support in the unfortunate event of an emergency.

On the 3rd of November 2023, our Rainbow Restoration Annual Reunion took place in the Hilton Hotel, Burton. It was a moment of pride as we dedicated our support to The Oliver King Foundation during this event, successfully raising over £3000 through our charity raffle and unveiling the first electric van fitted with a defibrillator to be deployed to the network.

This marks the beginning of a lasting partnership that we are exceptionally proud to be a part of. We deeply appreciate and are grateful to Mark King and The Oliver King Foundation for their vital work in honouring Oliver’s legacy, improving defibrillator access, and raising awareness of heart-related conditions.

Our Journey to Building a Heart-Strong Community

We have successfully launched defibrillators in 11 vans, and counting!

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Track the Progress of Our Initiative

Branch

Model

Location Covered

Rainbow Restoration Portsmouth Peugeot E-Expert Littlehampton, Rustington, Chichester, Bognor Regis and Worthing
Rainbow Restoration Central Office Citroën Dispatch Based in West Yorkshire, but covering the whole of the UK
Rainbow Restoration Derby West & Stoke On Trent Renault Derbyshire and Stoke on Trent
Rainbow Restoration NW Notts Citroën Relay North & West Nottinghamshire and West Bromwich
Rainbow Restoration Rochester Ford Transit South East London and Kent
Rainbow Restoration Glasgow-West Office based Unit 94a, David Street, Glasgow
Rainbow Restoration Brighton Office based Unit 5, Willow Industrial Estate, Avis Way, Newhaven
Rainbow Restoration Swanley Peugeot Expert Chislehurst, Farnborough, Swanley, Orpington, Beckenham, Catford & Eltham
Rainbow Restoration Swanley Office based Unit 1 The Paddocks, Wood Street, Swanley
Rainbow Restoration Northampton Office based Butlers Leap, Rugby
Rainbow Restoration Northampton Maxus Northamptonshire
Rainbow Restoration Northampton Maxus Bedfordshire
Rainbow Restoration Northampton Maxus Leicestershire and some NG & PE postcodes
Rainbow Restoration Northampton Maxus T&A Service van covering postcodes: CV, NN, PE, NG, LU, MK, SG & CB
Rainbow Restoration Northampton Maxus Cambridgeshire and PE & SG postcodes

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