Dartford is Rocking Up In Red to beat the UK’s single biggest killer

Dartford Borough Council and local partners will be supporting the British Heart Foundation (BHF) in National Heart Month this February by organising a range of activities.

To kick off National Heart Month on Friday 1st February, the British Heart Foundation (BHF) is asking the great British public to organise a Rock Up In Red event and rally co-workers, friends and family to pay £2, Rock Up In Red and join the fight against heart disease.

Dartford Borough Council staff, Swanscombe Leisure Centre employees and Darenth Children’s Centre have already signed up and will be Rocking Up In Red!

There will also be a Rock Up In Red ZUMBA party at Fairfield Pool and Leisure Centre from 6pm-7pm on 1st February. Entry is £1 and all are welcome. Spaces are limited so call 01322 224400 to book your place.

It’s not too late to organise your own Rock Up In Red event! To find out more and to order your free Rock Up In Red Fundraising Kit – visit www.bhf.org.uk/red or call 0300 330 0645.

As well as Rock Up In Red, there are lots of other events planned around the Borough to raise funds and awareness during National Heart Month:

• You and Your Heart event in the Priory Shopping Centre

  Saturday 2nd February, 10am-3pm
  Dartford’s local Healthy Living Centre and pharmacists from Salveo Health Ltd will be offering FREE heart health checks and advice about to how to keep your heart healthy.

• Love your Heart, Love your Town

  Thursday 14th February, 10am-2pm
  As Dartford is a BHF Heart Town the town centre will be going red!  Share the love on Valentine’s Day at the Orchards Shopping Centre.

• Fun, Fundraising and the Fire Engine in Dartford High Street

  Friday 22nd February, 10am-3pm
  BHF will be in the town centre again during half term with the Mayor of Dartford and the Council’s vintage fire engine raising vital funds for the charity. Can you find the BHF Hearts in the Town? Prizes to be won!

• Stone Senior Citizen Tea & Cake Morning at Stone Pavilion

  Friday 22nd February, 10am-12noon
  Rock Up In Red for tea and cake in Stone Pavilion, Hayes Road, DA9 9TR and help to raise funds for the BHF. Donations of baked goods and raffle prizes welcome! Call  01322 384400 for more information.

• Quiz Night

  Friday 1st March, 7pm
  To round off a month of fundraising, St Edmunds Living Well Church is hosting a quiz night. Up to six people per team and £5 per person. Call 01322 311201 to book your team’s place.

There are over 2.7 million people in the UK currently suffering with heart disease and it is the UK’s single biggest killer. It kills one in six men and one in nine women and is responsible for almost 80,000 deaths in the UK each year, an average of 220 people each day.

Cllr Ann Allen, Lead Member for health said “As a Heart Town we wanted to get involved because the BHF does great work to research, support and educate people about the important subject of heart health. Here in Dartford we are encouraging residents to raise as much as possible for the nation’s heart charity in National Heart Month helping them to continue their vital, life-saving work. It’s been incredibly easy to co-ordinate and promises to be fun for all involved.”

Louise Parkes, Fundraising Director at the BHF, said: “National Heart Month is a great opportunity for everyone to think about their own hearts and the hearts of those around them. By organising a Rock Up In Red event, the great British public will be helping us to raise funds in order to continue saving lives. We offer our heartfelt thanks to the residents, community groups, schools and businesses of Dartford for so generously dedicating their time and energy to help us continue our fight for every heartbeat.”

ENDS

Notes to Editors

• All figures, unless otherwise stated, are from the British Heart Foundation Coronary Heart Disease Statistics Compendium 2012
• For more information about Rock Up In Red for National Heart Month or to donate please visit  www.bhf.org.uk/red
• Case studies are available for interview. Including men, women and children from all ages and with varying heart and circulatory conditions.
• The British Heart Foundation is the nation’s heart charity, dedicated to saving lives through pioneering research, patient care, campaigning for change and by providing vital information. But we urgently need help. We rely on donations of time and money to continue our life-saving work. Because together we can beat heart disease.
• For more information on the BHF, visit www.bhf.org.uk