The mother of a North East teenager who was stabbed while on a night out has welcomed the installation of a new emergency bleed kit, branding it the first of many.
Connor Brown was 18 when he went on a night out with friends in February 2019, but never returned home.
The ‘wonderful young man’ was stabbed and killed in an alleyway near Sunderland’s Gatsby pub and died from his injuries at the RVI in Newcastle a short time later. In December 2019, Leighton Barrass was jailed for life for Connor’s murder.
Now, Connor’s mum Tanya has welcomed the installation of a brand new Bleed Kit aimed at saving lives in case of catastrophic bleeding.
The Bleed Kits are linked to the Ambulance Service and if it is needed, they will direct a caller to the nearest mobile, or fixed, unit and give them the combination code to unlock it.
Items inside the kit are designed to stop catastrophic bleeding and the caller will then be guided on how to use the equipment.
Mrs Brown said she hopes the kit being installed at Chaplin's pub in Sunderland, will be the “first of many.”
She added: “We would like them fitted in and around Sunderland, on the outskirts of Sunderland.
Read more: Connor Brown: Parents emotional plea to stop knife attacks
“We have a few locations in Washington that have already agreed to host these kits as well, and we’ve crowdfunded for extra units so if anyone would like one then please get in touch using our email.
See what's inside the box below:
“The crowdfunding link is available on our website and the Facebook page as well, so please please get behind us on this because it really can make a difference to someone in need of life saving treatment.
Speaking on the location of the Bleed Kit she said she was very happy with it being installed at the pub.
She added: “It’s a central location in Sunderland and everyone knows Chaplin’s it’s been here for a long time so it won’t be misconstrued as another venue.
“It hasn’t changed its name really, it’s been Chaplin’s for as long as I can remember and people know where it is when you here the name.”
Currently there is ongoing fundraising in an aim to fund more of the Bleed Kits in Sunderland.
She said: “Initially we had to get people on board and a lot of them don’t know what they are so I had to go into these pubs and pitch it and the first one I went into they said I had sold them on it so that gave me a lot of confidence for the rest.
“It’s about getting that message as to what they are, what they can do and why they’re needed.”
To get more stories from Sunderland direct to your email basket go here
Speaking on the death of her son Connor, Mrs Brown concluded: “It’s really hard to get away from the traumatic events of losing Connor and it’s something new as a family will never ever do, but to keep his memory alive and enable us to keep talking about him everyday is important to us.
“But at the same time we’re doing something good for everyone who helped us, because we wouldn’t have been able to get through that first year if it wasn’t for the community and Sunderland supporting us.
“So now we just want to give it back by supporting then by protecting their youth, their children and their families, and this is just a really good way to do that.”
If you want to donate and help fund more Bleed Kits you can do so here
Read next:
- ITV: I'm A Celeb camp evacuated days before celebs due to arrive
- Skipton pub incident: Lancashire man dies after alleged assault
- Whitburn incident: Boy, 11, dies after being hit by bus on Lizard Lane
If you want to read more great stories, why not subscribe to your Northern Echo for as little as £1.25 a week. Click here
Share