‘Vital’ bleed kits fitted across Birmingham

16 July 2024

A West Midlands Police Federation member and a Police Community Support Officer have teamed up to oversee the installation of five bleed control kits in Birmingham city centre.

In May, life-saving equipment was positioned at key locations across the area: The Custard Factory, Dale End, Centenary Square, New Street and the Bullring car park on Edgbaston Street.

This comes after PCSO Zoe Bishop, a prominent advocate and official single-point-of-contact for the Bleed Kit Project, was approached by Sergeant Kris Willetts about the possibility of installations within central Birmingham following numerous placements across the wider county.

Police Federation member Kris was prompted to reach out to Zoe following another fatal stabbing outside a nightclub in the city centre on Boxing Day in 2022.

Zoe Bishop (right) is joined by Russ Edwards (Watch Commander at Ladywood Fire Station), Lynne Baird (Foundation founder), and Rae-Ann Preece (Foundation trustee) with the bleed control kits.

“Zoe used to be a PCSO on my team and I was aware of her incredible work with the bleed kits. After the stabbing in 2022, I thought it was time to push for them to be added within reaching distance of the city’s night-time economy,” he explained.

The Bleed Kit Project was set up by Lynne Baird after her son, Daniel, was tragically stabbed to death in Birmingham in July 2017, and is officially known as the Daniel Baird Foundation.

Funding secured

The bleed control kits, designed by Lynne, provide a first line of treatment to wound victims before an ambulance can arrive and are intended to keep them alive before they can be seen by a paramedic.

Each kit contains a pair of gloves, a pair of scissors, a foil blanket, a chest seal, a tourniquet and a gauze, all of which are easy for members of the public to use, Zoe confirmed.

“We successfully bid for funding through our Police and Crime Commissioner, which was facilitated by the BID (Business Improvement District),” she said.

“Trying to navigate through the city centre as an emergency service is difficult, especially in locations of high footfall. Research through the foundation shows the kits contribute to saving time, so they are a huge boost.”

Zoe said: “Together with Russ Edwards and his team at Ladywood Fire Station, I have delivered awareness events around knife crime to various businesses and organisations in the city for a while now, and this is how my involvement with the kits started. I am delighted we’ve been able to get these ones put in place.

“No training is required for use, but there is an information card inside and users can also contact the emergency services for help and guidance," she continued, “Another important thing to remember is that they can treat any catastrophic bleed, not just knife wounds.”

Looking to the future, Zoe has welcomed suggestions for new kit installation points anywhere in the West Midlands.

“They are manufactured by Turtle Engineering, and any member of the public can make contact with them with some input on where the next kit could be fitted,” she said.

“It’s so vital that we have them – they enable wound victims to receive medical attention straight away, which can save lives.”