Call for council to buy bleed kits to help stabbing victims
Wiltshire saw a 10% rise in knife crime last year
The purchase of bleed kits to help the victims of stabbings and road traffic accidents will be called for next week.
At a meeting of Wiltshire Council on Tuesday, May 19, councillors will consider a plea from backbench councillors Boaz Barry and Chris Vaughan for the purchase of 100 of the lifesaving kits.
Their call at County Hall in Trowbridge will come on the same day that Wiltshire Police launch their own bleed kit campaign in Chippenham – scene of a fatal stabbing in January.
The police have joined forces with HeartSafe UK, NHS England South West, and South West Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust to launch the Wiltshire Police Bleed Kit Partnership.
The motion from the two Reform UK councillors says “catastrophic bleeding is a leading cause of preventable death following trauma.”
“When every second counts, often an untrained bystander with the right equipment can save a life in those critical minutes before an ambulance arrives.
“Bleed control kits are designed specifically to give every opportunity of the patient’s survival.”
The bleed control kits include medical items such as tourniquets and haemostatic dressings, and are: “simple to use and are a proven component of public safety infrastructure.”
999 call handlers are able to direct callers to the nearest bleed kit – mirroring the established protocol for defibrillators.
The motion asks Wiltshire Council to complement the police-led initiative by funding the purchase and installation of 100 kits across key public locations.
The suggested locations include leisure and sports centres, libraries, secondary schools and colleges, council offices, and transport hubs.
The total capital cost of the kits is £22,900.
The motion proposes that this cost be added to the Capital Investment Programme and funded from any underspend identified in the Capital Investment 2025/26 Final Year End report.
The motion describes this as a “modest, one-off investment with the potential to save lives across Wiltshire for years to come.”
Recent statistics suggest there were nearly 300 crimes in Swindon and Wiltshire in which a knife was used.
In the neighbouring Avon & Somerset Police area, 800 bleed kits have been installed, contributing to 14 confirmed lives saved.