Defibrillators installed in Nationwide in Wallingford

The building is launching what is thought to be the UK’s largest-ever combined rollout across all 605 of its branches, including Wallingford in Oxfordshire.

Installations began earlier this year, with sites in Tooting, Peacehaven, Seaford, Eastbourne, East Ham, West Wickham, Maidstone, Northampton Kingsthorpe, and Redhill among the first to receive the equipment.

In June, branches in Sale, Salford and Stretford are scheduled to have defibrillators and bleed control kits installed.

The equipment will be housed in locked external cabinets, providing public access 24 hours a day, unless within a shopping centre.

Bleed control kits help treat life-threatening bleeding following traumatic injury, while defibrillators are designed to restart a person’s heart after cardiac arrest.

The rollout supports Nationwide’s wider commitment to high streets, following its pledge to keep branches open until at least 2030.

Amanda Beech, director of retail services at Nationwide, said: “Nationwide’s unique reach as the UK’s largest branch network gives us the ability to put life-saving equipment where it matters most – in places people already know and trust in their communities.

“By transforming our branches into visible, emergency hubs, we’re making it easier to access help when every second counts.

“Crucially we’re also offering training to all our branch colleagues, before extending that training into the communities we serve.

“We want more people to feel prepared, confident and ready to act when it matters most.”

The rollout is supported by life-saving first aid training delivered by St John Ambulance for both staff and the wider community.

Training will equip up to 4,000 Nationwide employees with CPR, defibrillator, and bleed control skills, with plans to expand to public sessions.

Professor Andrew Hartle, chief medical officer at St John Ambulance, said: “We’re so pleased to work with Nationwide and Visa on this project, which so perfectly meets St John Ambulance’s mission to put the power of first aid into everyone’s hands.

“With hundreds more public access defibrillators and bleed control kits across the UK, and thousands more people confident to use them, I am confident many more lives will be saved in our communities.”

The importance of having life-saving equipment readily available locally for emergency services to deploy if needed – and the crucial role the public can play – is made clear by the facts: without first aid intervention, a severe bleed or cardiac arrest can lead to death within minutes.

Severe bleeding remains a leading cause of death after traumatic injury in the UK, with knife- or sharp instrument-related offences totalling around 53,000 in 2024/2025.

And of the 40,000 out-of-hospital cardiac arrests in the country each year, fewer than one in 10 people are estimated to survive.