A POTENTIALLY lifesaving first aid kit which could keep stab victims from bleeding to death has been installed in Southend.

The emergency access bleed control kit sits outside Southend Treatment and Recovery Service (STARS) HQ in Weston Road.

The kit, which is publicly accessible, contain first aid resources to patch a wound and control the flow of blood until an ambulance arrives, and it is hoped it may help reduce fatalities caused by knife crime.

The bleed control kits are made by The Daniel Baird Foundation, a charity set up after 26-year-old Daniel Baird was knifed to death outside a pub in Birmingham in July 2017.

Councillor Martin Terry, cabinet member for public protection, said: “Although I hope this never needs to be used, I think it is incredibly helpful to know where the kit is located, should the worst happen and emergency first aid is needed.

“We continue to have a zero-tolerance approach to knives and this is another example of various agencies and organisations working together to make sure our residents and visitors are safe and protected. I want to thank STARS and the Daniel Baird Foundation for making it possible.”

STARS is working with Southend Police and the council to place more kits around the borough.

Chief inspector Ian Hughes, Southend district commander for Essex Police, said: “It is important we are working with partners to make best use of all of our resources, and this includes sharing information or sharing vital equipment so we are best equipped to provide lifesaving first aid when required.”

The Daniel Bird Foundation says the kits are also for more than just knife crime victims, and could potentially save the lives of crash victims, or people injured at work.

A spokesman for the charity said: “We believe that having publicly accessible bleeding control packs in all major shopping centres, pubs, clubs, and transport stations, is vital to provide the necessary first aid to reduce blood loss until professional medical help arrives.

“For the cost of a kit, a life could be saved and their family spared lifelong grief knowing that they could perhaps have survived.”