Claire Brown – 12th January 2026 – 2.20pm.
Burntwood and Cannock Community First Responders (CFRs) have received a major boost after a generous local community group raised more than £17,000 for their volunteer scheme.
On Sunday 7 December, local fundraising group The Inflatables took on a 16km festive fun run around the Burntwood area, all while dressed in seasonal inflatable costumes. Around 30 runners, including three Community First Responders, participated in the event to raise funds for the group’s chosen Charity of the Year: Burntwood and Cannock Community First Responders.
Burntwood and Cannock Community First Responders are unpaid volunteers who are trained by West Midlands Ambulance Service and respond in their spare time to 999 calls within their local community to provide immediate treatment until an ambulance arrives.
The group didn’t stop there. Alongside the run, The Inflatables also organised a raffle, further increasing their fundraising total. The combined efforts resulted in an impressive sum of money which was recently presented to the CFR team. Since the cheque was presented to the CFRs, more money has been donated bringing the total to £17,389.43.
Andy McCrum, Burntwood and Cannock Community First Responder, said: “Their enthusiasm and community spirit is truly infectious. We’d like to thank the group for their incredibly generous donation to our volunteer scheme, with special thanks to Scott Murcott, Dan Garrity, Jordan Anderson and Craig Wilson, who made this all possible, as well as everyone else involved in helping raise funds for our team.
The money will be used by the volunteers over the next two years to replace their current scheme response car, RC658A, to help keep the CFRs on the road for the foreseeable future.
Dan Garrity from The Inflatables said: “We ran 16 kilometres for something that truly matters to us.
The Burntwood and Cannock District Community First Responders are volunteers who drop everything to help people in their most critical moments, often arriving before an ambulance due to being stationed in the local area and making a life-saving difference when every second counts.
By pushing ourselves over those 16 kilometres, we wanted to support the incredible work they do and help ensure they have the equipment, training, and resources they need to keep our community safe.
Thanks to the generosity and support of so many people and some last-minute donations, we’re incredibly proud to have raised over £17,000. Every step was for them, and every donation will help them continue saving lives when it matters most.”
ENDS
To find out more about the work of our CFRs visit Community First Responders – West Midlands Ambulance Service University NHS Foundation Trust
Featured photo: CFRs Lauren Corke, Dominick Pumphrey and Andy McCrum wearing inflatables for run.
