A PROJECT designed to save dozens of lives across the West Midlands has led to a near 10 per cent increase in the number of times a machine has attended an incident.

Last year, West Midlands Ambulance Service started a scheme to install 500 automatic external defibrillators across the region.

These are mainly at locations with high footfall such as shopping centres or places that see regular 999 call-outs.

The frequency these have been used has increased by around 10 per day since the start of the project.

Community response manager Matt Heward said: "By installing the machines, which can be used by anyone, we have increased the chances of saving lives right across the region.

"At the start of the project we were seeing an AED used about 2,700 times a month.

"That figure has now hit almost 3,050 a month – that is about 10 times a day more.

"This whole project was about getting defibrillators out into the community where they are going to benefit the public.

"We’ve seen them installed in golf clubs, leisure centres, town centres, local village communities.

"The 500th was placed with our colleagues in Central Motorway Police Group.

"We will continue to work with communities and organisations to increase the number of AEDs out there as they can only help save lives."