DEFIBRILLATORS have been installed around Wellington after the ambulance service reported it was responding to an unusually high number of heart-related incidents.

The town council-funded initiative will see people offered free training to that could potentially save lives.

The project is part of the One Team scheme, which has helped cut crime and improve life in Halcon, East Taunton, and is now being rolled out in Wellington and North Taunton.

Sgt Andy Murphy was the brains behind Halcon One Team, when he got the relevant agencies together to tackle the disproportionate levels of crime and social problems on the estate.

He said: “It involves trying to understand the issues certain families face and sitting down trying to come up with a problem solving plan in agreement with the most needy families.

“It’s getting the professionals around the table to find the best person to go into that house.

“The aim is to bring down crime in a sustainable way so that the community becomes far more cohesive and brings down the cost to the public sector.”

Angela Bolitho is the Team co-ordinator in North Taunton, which has Somerset’s highest teenage pregnancy rate.

She said: “We are about helping and trying to get to the root of the problem. It comes down to understanding our communities.”

Paul Chamberlain, who has been seconded from Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Service to take up the role of Wellington One Team co-ordinator, said: “There are pockets of anti-social behaviour in the town that are historic.

“I’ve pulled all the partners around a table to build up a picture.

“One of the things we were able to do was move a family from Wellington to Halcon, where they’re working with the One Team.

“The family is now functioning as a unit and pressure has been released on Wellington.”

*The County Gazette is running regular articles from the One Teams to inform readers of the initiatives that are improving things in the three area.