More than 16 million people in England and Wales face an increased risk of death from cardiac arrest due to limited access to nearby defibrillators, according to recent research by the Restart a Heart campaign. The study analyzed publicly available data on defibrillator locations and found that over half of the population—approximately 35 million people—do not live within the recommended three to five-minute brisk walking distance from a defibrillator that is accessible 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Of these, around half reside more than a 1-kilometer round trip away from such a device.

Cardiac arrests occurring outside hospital settings number more than 40,000 annually in the UK, with survival rates below 10%. Timely intervention through cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and defibrillation significantly improves survival chances, potentially more than doubling them. However, delays in receiving emergency treatment beyond 10 minutes, roughly the time it takes to cover a 1-kilometer round trip to retrieve a defibrillator, markedly reduce the likelihood of survival.

The analysis showed that nearly all local authorities, with the exception of the City of London, have residents living at least 10 minutes away from their nearest 24/7 accessible defibrillator. Out of 318 local authority areas evaluated, 264 had over half of their population not within the recommended reach of a defibrillator.

Access disparities were also evident. For example, in Harlow, Essex, more than 70% of residents live at least 10 minutes from the nearest accessible defibrillator. In Birmingham, nearly half a million people reside more than 500 meters away from a 24/7 defibrillator. In contrast, the City of London reported full coverage, with every resident within the advised walking distance.

In response to these findings, the British Heart Foundation (BHF) has launched a community defibrillator initiative, offering 400 24/7 defibrillators to local areas across the UK. The campaign aims to target regions identified as defibrillator deserts—areas with significant distances to the nearest device, combined with high population density and levels of deprivation. Key areas highlighted include Barking and Dagenham, Liverpool, Southampton, Nottingham, Wrexham, Newport, as well as parts of Scotland and Northern Ireland. The campaign seeks to address these gaps and improve emergency cardiac care access nationwide.