FIRST Innerleithen Girl Guides enjoyed an interactive evening of first aid training on Monday night with help from Innerleithen & Walkerburn Community First Responders.

The night was organised to teach potentially life saving skills and help the girls work towards their first aid badge.

Some were renewing their badge from last year and others were hoping to get their first.

Guide Leader Alexina Hamilton told the Peeblesshire News: “It can get a bit boring for them doing the same thing year after year. Normally we just have a paramedic come in to speak and then we ask questions to see what the girls had learned. So we thought we would make it a bit more exciting.

“We've made it a lot more interactive and I think it's helped a lot. Practising first aid is about doing, not just listening. They'll be more likely to retain the information by acting out the procedures.

“The work the First Responders did with our guides was amazing.”

First Responders are a group of unpaid volunteers, trained to go to the assistance of local people under the direction of Ambulance Control, often arriving before the ambulance. They also offer free training in emergency lifesaving skills, using British Heart Foundation’s Heart Start material, to members of the public or local organisations.

They taught the guides, aged 10 to 14, all the usual emergency procedures, as well as something completely new - how to use defibrillators.

First Responder Jackie Couchman said: “We have worked hard to have defibrillators placed into community areas for example outside the town hall in Walkerburn and the co-op at Innerleithen for community access in emergency situations. Many kids will see these but will not understand their importance so we wanted to create an awareness of what they are, what they do, and how easy they are to use so that the girl's won't be afraid to approach them.”

They also learned how to check casualties and put them in the recovery position, how to save someone from choking using a 'Choking Charlie' dummy, and practised CPR using a 'puck' which measures the depth and rate of compressions and detects the chest rise of a breath.

Alexina was pleased with how well the evening went: “They all really enjoyed it and were eager to get up and have a go. I think it's really important to get them learning young because it'll become ingrained in their minds that way.

“My five year old 'rainbow' was there too and she even remembered what she learned. The next morning she came running in saying 'mummy are you choking' and carried out the procedure on me.”

To be awarded their first aid badge, the girl's training extends over three weeks in total. Last week they made posters about different medical conditions such as diabetes, epilepsy, and hypothermia, and each group presented their poster to the others.

Next week, guide leaders have organised a quiz evening in order to test what the girls have learned.

Alexina said that Girl Guide groups throughout the Borders are always looking for new leaders, Anyone interested can contact her on 01896 870589.