Tag: brave@Heart Awards

Brave@Heart Awards: First Minister celebrates acts of courage

Brave@Heart Awards given to emergency service workers and members of the public

Brave@Heart Awards have been presented to 12 emergency service workers and six members of the public by First Minister John Swinney.

Among those recognised for acts of courage were two police officers who rescued a woman from a burning flat and an officer who dragged a woman to safety after she had been in the sea for more than an hour. Three other officers were recognised for swimming out to help someone trapped in a submerged vehicle 15 metres offshore.

Other winners included a six-year-old girl who alerted her father to the fact her younger brother was having a seizure and then kept watch for the ambulance arriving. Five members of the public received awards for helping people in burning buildings before firefighters arrived.

Constable James Henderson, Constable Steven Prentice and Winch Paramedic Norman MacLeod from the Stornoway Rescue Team were additionally awarded the St Andrew’s Award for acts of exceptional bravery.

Constables Henderson and Prentice entered an unsafe roof space and revived a man who had attempted to take his own life. Norman McLeod was lowered from a helicopter to a Spanish ship were he tended to and then evacuated two crew members who had sustained life-threatening injuries. 

Since 2010, the Brave@Heart Awards have recognised acts of bravery by staff of the blue-light services, voluntary sector rescue organisations and members of the public. The recipients each year are chosen by an independent validation panel.

First Minister John Swinney said: “Celebrating heroism and remarkable deeds that save lives is one of the greatest honours I have as First Minister.

“The Brave@Heart Awards recognise courage and demonstrate that it can be shown at any age and in different circumstances.

“Every one of this year’s winners chose to act with bravery when it mattered most. That was clear from what the validation panel shared with me, and it was clear from speaking to these inspiring members of the public and representatives of Scotland’s emergency services.”

Brave@Heart Validation Panel Chair David Garbutt said: “It has been an honour to hear of so many inspiring acts of courage and selflessness undertaken by citizens in Scotland and by members of the emergency services. 

“I am grateful to the First Minister for continuing to sponsor these awards and congratulate all of the award recipients for their achievement and for demonstrating the public spirited actions which help keep our society safe. Finally, I thank the members of the emergency services who worked with me as members of the validation panel.”

Scottish Ambulance Service staff and volunteers awarded for acts of bravery and heroism

A Scottish Ambulance Service (SAS) call handler along with SAS volunteers, members of the public and two youngsters have been rewarded for their bravery at this year’s Brave@Heart awards.

The Brave@Heart Awards celebrate acts of bravery in exceptional circumstances by blue-light services, voluntary rescue organisations and members of the public.

Claire Morrow Taylor, Claire Weller, Alison Mckay, Jackie King, Alister Brown, Richie Batho, Craig Scott, Ben Kilner, Stephen Kilner, Jacob Bothwell and Jayden Fox all collected Brave@Heart certificates on Tuesday (October 3) at an award ceremony in Edinburgh Castle attended by Stephen Massetti, SAS’s Director of National Operations, and presented by First Minister Humza Yousaf.

Claire Morrow Taylor, an Ambulance Control Centre (ACC) call handler based at SAS’s West ACC, helped save a life of a member of the public who was lying on a road in Glasgow.

Her award submission said: “She immediately took control of the situation, instructing her husband to direct traffic around the incident whilst she called 999 to request an ambulance and attended to the patient. Claire, a non-clinical member of staff, demonstrated that she lives and breathes the SAS and NHS’s core values – we are proud of her actions and feel lucky to have Claire as part of the SAS Team.”

Claire Weller, a SAS Wildcat Cardiac Responder, along with Alison Mckay and Jackie King, all members of the Findhorn Coastal Rowing Club, came to the aid of their crewmate MacLean MacLeod when he suddenly collapsed in April 2022. 

Their award submission said: “They immediately recognised what had occurred and could see that MacLean wasn’t breathing and had no pulse; Claire quickly began CPR chest compressions, along with Alison, and instructed the other crew members to dial 999 and access the nearest defibrillator for deployment at the scene. Jackie, who was out walking at the time, delivered two of the AED shocks.”

MacLean was transferred by ambulance to Dr Gray’s hospital and has since made a full recovery. At the time, he said: “I would not be here today were it not for Captain Claire and the crew.”

Alister Brown, a community First Responder at Largs was meeting his friend Jim Stevenson at Largs Golf Club in March 2022.  However, Jim arrived breathless and then collapsed shortly thereafter. 

His award submission said: “On examination, he realised Jim wasn’t breathing and his training kicked in. He began CPR whilst also calling for assistance to deploy the defibrillator which was located on the golf club premises. On one shock, things started moving and signs of survival were visible.”

At the time, Jim said: “I wouldn’t be here today. It’s simple – this is life-saving work.”

Richie Batho, Craig Scott, Ben Kilner and Stephen Kilner attended to a man who took unwell in the grounds of The Unit Gym and Fitness centre in Banchory. 

Their submission said: “The group realised the patient was unconscious and in cardiac arrest. They immediately commenced CPR taking turns and were able to give four shocks with the Automated External Defibrillator which was on the premises.”

Young Jayden Fox, 14 of Kirkcaldy, was on holiday in Banchory with his grandfather Bill Fox suffered a cardiac arrest. 

His award submission said: “Jayden sprang into action and commenced performing CPR on his grandfather even before emergency crews arrived on the scene.  He remained calm and collected throughout and continued performing CPR until paramedics arrived on the scene which led to a positive outcome for Bill.”

Jacob Bothwell, 11 of Montrose, was at home when his mother became unwell in February 2022. 

The award submission said: “Young Jacob smartly dialled 999 from his mother’s mobile to ask for assistance from police and ambulance services. Jacob managed to call for assistance and contact his father who was out of the house on work on the day as well.  In addition to this, he looked after younger siblings simultaneously to ensure they were not panicking as well.”

SAS Chief Executive Michael Dickson said: “The actions of all the Brave@Heart recipients are truly commendable and they have each showed extraordinary bravery.

“All our staff and volunteers do amazing, lifesaving work each day. They are all wonderful ambassadors for the Scottish Ambulance Service and their communities and are fully deserving of their awards.

“I’d like also to commend the actions of the members of the public, including the two youngsters who did amazing jobs to help relatives.”

Five Scottish Ambulance Service staff receive awards for acts of bravery

Five Scottish Ambulance Service staff members have been awarded for acts of bravery.

The Brave@Heart Awards celebrate acts of bravery in exceptional circumstances by blue-light services, voluntary rescue organisations and members of the public.

Last year’s winners for the Service were Scott Diamond, Willie Anderson, Caron Robertson, Amanda McClorey, and Neil Spiers. The staff were nominated by their colleagues and demonstrated bravery during their shift or outside their work hours.

Caron (top), originally from Prestwick, and Amanda (above), both of Stranraer Station, were rewarded for helping a patient who injured herself after falling on a rock at a beach. With no mobile signal, the patient’s son went to a nearby farmhouse to call for an ambulance. Caron, Technician, and Amanda, Paramedic, arrived on the scene.

Their award submission said: “They took control of the situation calmly with retrieval of the patient required over a steep cliff face. Both clambered down the cliff and helped get the patient up. The patient was transported by the RNLI to Port Patrick and then by Caron and Amanda to hospital.”

Willie (above), Technician, and Scott, Clinical Training Officer, were rewarded after they attended an explosion after initially getting called out to another incident while working at Glasgow West Station station.

Whilst on scene at the first incident, they were approached by a member of the public stating there had been an explosion in a nearby takeaway shop. They ran in and got the staff out of the takeaway shop, then there was a secondary explosion that started a fire. The pair then forced their way in and got more than 20 people out as the building started to fill with smoke.

The crew contacted ACC and requested the attendance of Police and Fire Service. Their award submission said: “It is clear that Scott and William acted above and beyond the normal call of duty, acted selflessly, to reduce the risks to the public and residents within the building.”

Neil, of Pencaitland, East Lothian, an MPDS Auditor, arrived early ahead of his shift to take some photographs of yachts and soon became aware of a woman shouting for help. She had fallen in to the freezing water and managed to crawl ashore.

Neil, who was a call handler at the time, acted quickly, calling for assistance and gave her his jacket to keep her warm until help arrived.

His award submission said: “Once the ambulance crew arrived, he returned to his shift for the day. During his shift, he received a call from a member of public who had found a male in the water. Neil gave clear CPR instructions to the bystanders until the ambulance crew arrived on this site as well. The patient was transported to hospital.”

Scottish Ambulance Service Chief Executive Pauline Howie said: “The actions of these staff are truly commendable and they each showed extraordinary bravery. All our staff do amazing, life-saving work each day and this is a small sample.

“The staff are all wonderful ambassadors for the Scottish Ambulance Service and fully deserving of their awards.”