Essex community first responder wins national NHS volunteer award

Ron Ridge, a CFR for almost 20 years who established the EEAST Heart training initiative, was announced as the winner of the Volunteer Award at the NHS Parliamentary Awards on 14 October.

Ron was nominated by his local MP Alex Burghart. His success is a particular achievement this year, with 318 MPs across England putting forward 918 nominations – a far greater number than in any previous year.

Ron has been educating and training people in the community on how to perform CPR since 2005, and was integral in setting up EEAST Heart in 2021. In 2023 alone, the initiative trained 4,086 people in basic life support through a network of 111 trainers that Ron helped set up to deliver this.

All of Ron's work on the EEAST Heart scheme is done in his own spare time as a volunteer. His dedication to educating others for the benefit of the wider community is second to none. There are 111 trainers across the region, and Ron coordinates the Essex team.

Ron attended the awards ceremony on 14 October along with EEAST Chief Executive Neill Moloney. Attendees at the event included the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, Wes Streeting MP, and NHS England CEO Amanda Pritchard.

Ron said: "I am absolutely thrilled to be awarded the Volunteer Award. It is an amazing accolade to the work all our CFRs and EEAST Heart volunteers offer into our communities. I am passionate about being a CFR and also about educating people. It is amazing to get praise from your peers but to receive national recognition is very humbling."

Alex Burghart, MP for Brentwood and Ongar, said: "My letter of support for the nomination of Ron Ridge for an NHS Parliamentary Award described Ron as ‘a shining example of someone who goes above and beyond to improve the lives of so many in the Brentwood and Ongar community’.

"To see him recognised by the NHS Parliamentary Awards is brilliant news, and well deserved by Ron. I have no doubt he will continue to train many more people in the life-saving skills of CPR and thank him for all he does for all of us living in Brentwood and Ongar."

You can view more information on the volunteering opportunities available at EEAST on our website.