Pupils get first aid lessons from heroic Wigan Athletic pair

Latics stars Will Grigg and Michael Jacobs helped deliver first aid and CPR training to pupils at a Wigan primary school.
Players Will Grigg, left, and Michael Jacobs, right, were surprise guests to help Year Six pupils with CPR trainingPlayers Will Grigg, left, and Michael Jacobs, right, were surprise guests to help Year Six pupils with CPR training
Players Will Grigg, left, and Michael Jacobs, right, were surprise guests to help Year Six pupils with CPR training

They helped teach first aid at St Andrew’s in Springfield as part of Wigan Athletic Community Trust.

Around 25 Year Six pupils took part in life-saving activities with the duo, which included how to recognise a heart attack and a cardiac arrest, how to help an unconscious person, how to perform CPR and the steps needed to take to respond to serious bleeding.

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FA Cup winning captain Emmerson Boyce and Olympian Jenny Meadows helped to launch the initiative at the DW Stadium in January, with the Community Trust set to work with more than 2,000 children.

Players Will Grigg, left, and Michael Jacobs, right, were surprise guests to help Year Six pupils with CPR trainingPlayers Will Grigg, left, and Michael Jacobs, right, were surprise guests to help Year Six pupils with CPR training
Players Will Grigg, left, and Michael Jacobs, right, were surprise guests to help Year Six pupils with CPR training

Will said: “It was brilliant to see the children learning something new because it’s such an important skill to have, even for people like ourselves. We both knew how to do CPR but it was good for us to refresh our knowledge because you never know when you might need to use the skill.

“The reactions were incredible. There was so much happiness on their faces and it was honestly amazing to see. We were both blown away by the support that was shown to us from everyone at the school.”

The session was part of the Premier League Primary Stars programme, a scheme that uses the appeal of Wigan Athletic to inspire youngsters across the borough, with the club’s award-winning charity working with more than 4,000 children and 120 teachers since the launch.

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Philip Sharkey, a teacher at St Andrew’s, said: “It was wonderful to welcome Will and Michael and for them to be able to help the children to learn skills they’ll now have for the rest of their lives.

Players Will Grigg, left, and Michael Jacobs, right, were surprise guests to help Year Six pupils with CPR trainingPlayers Will Grigg, left, and Michael Jacobs, right, were surprise guests to help Year Six pupils with CPR training
Players Will Grigg, left, and Michael Jacobs, right, were surprise guests to help Year Six pupils with CPR training

“We’re a big Wigan Athletic school and have a number of supporters here so the children’s jaws just dropped as soon as they saw the players.”

Will and Michael later visited pupils in Year Five who had been writing match reports from the club’s recent epic FA Cup victory over Manchester City.