Accrington Stanley Community Trust Installs Bleed Control Cabinet at the Wham Stadium
Accrington Stanley Community Trust, in partnership with the Violence Reduction Network (VRN), has installed a new bleed control cabinet at the Wham Stadium as part of Sceptre, a national knife crime awareness week.
The cabinet was funded through the efforts of the Trust’s Champions team, who organised a series of fundraising activities last November. These included a sponsored 10-mile walk from the Wham Stadium to Blackburn Cathedral, cake sales, and a matchday collection held at the stadium in December.
Accrington Stanley player ambassador Josh Woods praised the initiative and the efforts of the young people involved in raising the funds.
Josh Woods said: “It’s fantastic to see the Champions programme taking the lead on something that could potentially save lives. The effort the young people put into fundraising for the cabinet shows how much they care about their community. Initiatives like this help raise awareness and remind everyone how important it is to look out for one another.”
Clive Grunshaw, Police and Crime Commissioner for Lancashire said: “Installing this new bleed control cabinet at Wham Stadium is an important step and reflects the preventative, partnership‑led approach set out in my Police and Crime Plan.
“Our focus is always on reducing serious violence, but when incidents do occur, this equipment can be vital in saving lives.”
The bleed control cabinet contains specialist first aid equipment designed to help save lives in the rare event of a serious injury. Installed at the stadium to provide rapid access to emergency medical supplies, the cabinet will help support casualties by controlling severe bleeding until professional medical assistance arrives.
Inside the cabinet are vital life-saving items such as trauma dressings, haemostatic gauze, and other bleed control materials. In critical situations, having immediate access to this equipment can make a significant difference and help preserve life before paramedics reach the scene.
This initiative highlights the Trust’s ongoing commitment to raising awareness around knife crime, promoting community safety, and working with partners to support safer environments for supporters, staff and the wider community.
The Champions Programme is delivered by Accrington Stanley Community Trust and funded by the Lancashire Violence Reduction Network (LVRN), part of the Office of the Lancashire Police and Crime Commissioner. LVRN brings together organisations across local communities to tackle the underlying causes that contribute to serious violent crime.