Backed by UKHospitality (UKH), the British Institute of Innkeeping (BII) and the British Beer and Pub Association (BBPA), the campaign will focus on building both CPR competence and confidence, equipping hospitality staff with the knowledge to respond to a cardiac arrest.
It will deliver accessible CPR training for hospitality outlets and supplier employees at all levels and also see the distribution of CPRWrap kits — practical tools designed to support confidence in an emergency.
Each CPRWrap costs £10, which includes access to training, and provides venues and suppliers with a CPR aid to add to their existing first aid kits.
Beyond training and equipment, the campaign aims to create sector advocates. Participating businesses will be encouraged to champion CPR competency and confidence with their customers and local communities, extending the initiative’s impact beyond the workplace.
“Project Rosie represents a unique opportunity to empower the UK’s hospitality industry to save lives,” says Naomi Fielding, commercial director, CPRWrap Europe.
“Immediate CPR can make the difference between life and death, and by making training widely accessible, we are equipping everyday people to become confident in emergency situations.”
Allen Simpson, chief executive of UKHospitality, added: “Hospitality is built on care, people and community, and with that comes a responsibility to keep one another safe.
“UKHospitality is proud to support an industry-wide commitment to improve CPR competence and confidence, helping our people feel prepared to act in an emergency.
“This campaign reflects the very best of our sector – working together to create safer workplaces, stronger communities and a more resilient future for hospitality.”
Cardiac arrest in the UK
In the United Kingdom, there are approximately 115,000 out-of-hospital cardiac arrests reported to ambulance services each year, but emergency services attempt resuscitation in around 43,000 of these cases - about four in 10.
Survival to hospital discharge after out-of-hospital cardiac arrest is less than 10%, meaning that the majority of people affected do not survive.
Immediate bystander CPR can more than double a cardiac arrest victim’s chance of survival.
However, only 13% of people said they were very confident in giving CPR to someone they do not know in a recent Ipsos survey of 2,252 UK adults aged 16 to 75.
When asked how confident they would feel performing CPR using CPRWrap, the proportion saying they would feel “very confident” increased to 20%.
Overall confidence - those saying they were either ‘somewhat’ or ‘very confident’ - increased from 43% to 67% in the same research.