A community first responder is encouraging other residents to do their bit and sign up.

Community first responders are volunteers, trained by the ambulance service to attend emergency calls in the area where they live or work.

Their aim is to reach a potential life threatening emergency in the first vital minutes before the ambulance crew arrives on scene.

Mark Clark, 42, of Sible Hedingham, signed up four years ago.

The police officer said: “Because of my day job, I am trained to use defibrillators and to do first aid anyway.

“I was on a first aid course and someone mentioned about the scheme and I thought I would have a look.”