2 July 2015

Costain, as part of the Company's 150 Challenge*, has launched a new Healthy Hearts campaign with a ‘Skipathon’ taking place in schools and engineering projects up and down the country to raise awareness about heart disease.

The aim of the Skipathon is to get more schoolchildren skipping as a cheap, fun and easy way to stay fit. Meanwhile, on its construction and engineering projects, the Company is training people to use cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), a first aid technique that can be used if someone has stopped breathing properly or if their heart has stopped.

Costain 'skipped’ off the Skipathon at Holy Trinity C of E Primary School in Cookham near Maidenhead, with Group HR Director, Sally Austin, leading the count down for the month-long campaign. To date over 30 schools have signed up. At Costain, it is planned that all of its projects will take part, training its staff as first responders to use CPR.

“Coronary heart disease is the UK's single biggest killer, and working in a high pressure environment can sometimes put added strain on the heart. Knowing what to look out for if someone has a cardiac arrest, and being able to respond to it quickly, can make all the difference," said Sally.

One of the Company’s beneficiary charities is the British Heart Foundation, the UK’s largest independent funder of cardiovascular research. The Skipathon initiative has been designed to ensure that Costain’s 150 Challenge provides a long-lasting legacy beyond its 12 months of fundraising.

Catherine Warbrick, Costain’s Director for Investor Relations and Corporate Responsibility, said: “As part of the 150 Challenge, we are having a year of intensive fund raising but we wanted to ensure the momentum lasts way past December. Preventing heart disease through skipping and training more people to use CPR confidently are worthwhile legacies that we hope we can embed. Our ‘Healthy Heart’ month is just the start.”

Costain is keen to increase the number of schools taking part, and would love to hear from any schools in the UK that would like to get involved. If you’re interested, please email the Company at [email protected]

 

Pictured: Holy Trinity C of E Primary School pupils and teachers join in the Skipathon, with Costain's Sally Austin, Group HR Director (centre) and James York, Corporate Responsibility Manager (second left).

 

*The 150 Challenge commemorates Costain’s 150th anniversary and involves raising £1million in 2015 for the Costain Charitable Foundation’s four chosen charities – the British Heart Foundation, Macmillan Cancer Support, youth charity The Prince’s Trust and Samaritans.

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