Pauline's Law

09/06/2026

This one is really a thank you to all of you. 🩷💛

Every read, comment, share and conversation has helped Pauline's Law reach a little further - and you've all played a part in helping it get to where it is today. ❤️

💛🩷 Pauline's Law at the Scottish Parliament - and a Little Thank You

This week marked a very special milestone for Pauline's Law.

On Tuesday, I had the opportunity to visit the Scottish Parliament and meet with David Barratt MSP to discuss the campaign, the progress made so far and what the next steps might look like.

For anyone seeing Pauline's Law for the first time, the campaign was created following the loss of our mum, Pauline, and inspired by the incredible actions of those who tried to save her life.

When Mum became critically unwell whilst out with my family, staff and members of the public stepped forward to perform CPR and use a defibrillator before the ambulance crew arrived, with some continuing to help alongside them.

Although our mum sadly didn't survive, those people knew what to do and had the confidence to act quickly - giving her the best possible chance.

That experience left me with a question:

What if more people had the knowledge, practical skills and confidence to step forward in an emergency?

The aim of Pauline's Law is for every young person to have the opportunity to gain a recognised emergency first aid qualification before leaving school and entering adulthood - including practical skills such as CPR and using a defibrillator, but also responding to choking, severe bleeding and an unconscious casualty.

There is already some fantastic first aid and CPR education taking place in schools, and part of what I'm doing now is learning much more about that - what's working, where the gaps are and how we might build on existing provision so every young person has the same opportunity.

Tuesday's meeting was an incredibly positive and constructive discussion about that ambition and some of the different ways we might work towards it.

I came away really encouraged, with plenty to think about, explore and learn more about.

But reaching this particular milestone has also made me stop and think about how Pauline's Law has got to where it is today.

When I started the campaign, I had absolutely no idea where it would lead. I certainly didn't imagine that only a few months later I would be sitting in the Scottish Parliament discussing it.

Somebody said something to me this week that really made me think:

“This is where it's at because of you - you're doing it all yourself.”

It was an incredibly lovely thing for them to say, but the truth is...

I'm not.

Although Pauline's Law began with me and my family's experience, I haven't got it to this point on my own.

So I want to say a huge thank you to everyone who has helped along the way. 🩷💛

Thank you to the people who have given me their time, knowledge and advice - including those who have challenged me, asked difficult questions or offered a different perspective. Every conversation has helped me learn and develop the campaign.

Thank you to those who have encouraged me, made introductions, opened doors and helped me understand a world that was completely unfamiliar to me when I started.

Thank you to the young people, parents, first aid trainers, healthcare professionals, educators, community organisations and elected representatives who have very generously given up their time to talk to me, share their experiences, offer advice and encouragement or simply listen to what I'm trying to achieve.

And a particularly big thank you to all of the community groups who have allowed me to share Pauline's Law with you.

Your groups have played a much bigger part in this than you may realise.

Every time somebody reads one of my posts, leaves a comment, asks a question, shares it with somebody else or starts a conversation about Pauline's Law - or even emergency first aid in general - the campaign reaches people I could never have reached on my own.

Over the last few days especially, I've been slightly overwhelmed by the response.

Posts have travelled into communities across Scotland, people who had never previously heard of Pauline's Law have joined the conversation, and more people are following the campaign and asking questions about what we're trying to achieve.

That happens because people choose to engage.

Someone reads a post.

Someone shares it.

Someone starts a conversation.

Someone tells somebody else.

And gradually, an idea begins reaching places and people you could never have reached on your own.

A few months ago, Pauline's Law was an idea born from one of the most difficult experiences of our lives and a determination to try to make something positive come from it.

This week, I was sitting in the Scottish Parliament discussing where that idea could go next.

That feels like quite a milestone.

But it's a milestone that an awful lot of people have helped me reach, and I'm incredibly grateful to every single one of you.

There is still an enormous amount for me to learn and a long way to go. I don't know exactly where this journey will ultimately lead.

But I do know that considerably more people know about Pauline's Law today than they did a few months ago.

And all of you have helped make that happen.

So whether you've been following Pauline's Law from the beginning, have offered advice or support along the way, shared one of my posts, commented in a community group, talked about it with somebody else, or have only discovered the campaign today...

Thank you. 🩷💛

Thank you for helping Pauline's Law get to where it is today.

Each and every one of you has played a part in that, and I hope you know how genuinely grateful I am.

And, most importantly, thank you for helping me keep talking about something that began with my mum, Pauline, and the people who stepped forward when our family needed them most.

It genuinely means more to me than I can put into words. ❤️

09/06/2026

💛🩷 Pauline's Law at the Scottish Parliament - and a Little Thank You

This week marked a very special milestone for Pauline's Law.

On Tuesday, I had the opportunity to visit the Scottish Parliament and meet with David Barratt MSP to discuss the campaign, the progress made so far and what the next steps might look like.

For anyone seeing Pauline's Law for the first time, the campaign was created following the loss of our mum, Pauline, and inspired by the incredible actions of those who tried to save her life.

When Mum became critically unwell whilst out with my family, staff and members of the public stepped forward to perform CPR and use a defibrillator before the ambulance crew arrived, with some continuing to help alongside them.

Although our mum sadly didn't survive, those people knew what to do and had the confidence to act quickly - giving her the best possible chance.

That experience left me with a question:

What if more people had the knowledge, practical skills and confidence to step forward in an emergency?

The aim of Pauline's Law is for every young person to have the opportunity to gain a recognised emergency first aid qualification before leaving school and entering adulthood - including practical skills such as CPR and using a defibrillator, but also responding to choking, severe bleeding and an unconscious casualty.

There is already some fantastic first aid and CPR education taking place in schools, and part of what I'm doing now is learning much more about that - what's working, where the gaps are and how we might build on existing provision so every young person has the same opportunity.

Tuesday's meeting was an incredibly positive and constructive discussion about that ambition and some of the different ways we might work towards it.

I came away really encouraged, with plenty to think about, explore and learn more about.

But reaching this particular milestone has also made me stop and think about how Pauline's Law has got to where it is today.

When I started the campaign, I had absolutely no idea where it would lead. I certainly didn't imagine that only a few months later I would be sitting in the Scottish Parliament discussing it.

Somebody said something to me this week that really made me think:

“This is where it's at because of you - you're doing it all yourself.”

It was an incredibly lovely thing for them to say, but the truth is...

I'm not.

Although Pauline's Law began with me and my family's experience, I haven't got it to this point on my own.

So I want to say a huge thank you to everyone who has helped along the way. 🩷💛

Thank you to the people who have given me their time, knowledge and advice - including those who have challenged me, asked difficult questions or offered a different perspective. Every conversation has helped me learn and develop the campaign.

Thank you to those who have encouraged me, made introductions, opened doors and helped me understand a world that was completely unfamiliar to me when I started.

Thank you to the young people, parents, first aid trainers, healthcare professionals, educators, community organisations and elected representatives who have very generously given up their time to talk to me, share their experiences, offer advice and encouragement or simply listen to what I'm trying to achieve.

And a particularly big thank you to all of the community groups who have allowed me to share Pauline's Law with you.

Your groups have played a much bigger part in this than you may realise.

Every time somebody reads one of my posts, leaves a comment, asks a question, shares it with somebody else or starts a conversation about Pauline's Law - or even emergency first aid in general - the campaign reaches people I could never have reached on my own.

Over the last few days especially, I've been slightly overwhelmed by the response.

Posts have travelled into communities across Scotland, people who had never previously heard of Pauline's Law have joined the conversation, and more people are following the campaign and asking questions about what we're trying to achieve.

That happens because people choose to engage.

Someone reads a post.

Someone shares it.

Someone starts a conversation.

Someone tells somebody else.

And gradually, an idea begins reaching places and people you could never have reached on your own.

A few months ago, Pauline's Law was an idea born from one of the most difficult experiences of our lives and a determination to try to make something positive come from it.

This week, I was sitting in the Scottish Parliament discussing where that idea could go next.

That feels like quite a milestone.

But it's a milestone that an awful lot of people have helped me reach, and I'm incredibly grateful to every single one of you.

There is still an enormous amount for me to learn and a long way to go. I don't know exactly where this journey will ultimately lead.

But I do know that considerably more people know about Pauline's Law today than they did a few months ago.

And all of you have helped make that happen.

So whether you've been following Pauline's Law from the beginning, have offered advice or support along the way, shared one of my posts, commented in a community group, talked about it with somebody else, or have only discovered the campaign today...

Thank you. 🩷💛

Thank you for helping Pauline's Law get to where it is today.

Each and every one of you has played a part in that, and I hope you know how genuinely grateful I am.

And, most importantly, thank you for helping me keep talking about something that began with my mum, Pauline, and the people who stepped forward when our family needed them most.

It genuinely means more to me than I can put into words. ❤️

09/04/2026

🩷💛 First Aid Friday #8 💛🩷
When performing CPR — DON'T STOP ❤️

Someone has collapsed.

They're unresponsive and they're not breathing normally.

You've called 999 and you've started CPR.

But how long do you keep going?

❤️The simple answer: DON'T STOP. ❤️

Once you've started CPR, keep going with as few interruptions as possible.

You might get tired.

You might worry you're doing it wrong.

You might even worry that you're hurting them.

💛 Keep going. 🩷

If someone else is there, ask them to get a defibrillator (AED) while you continue CPR.

When it arrives, keep CPR going while someone else attaches the pads if possible, and follow the AED's instructions — it will tell you when you need to pause.

💛 Continue CPR until the person shows signs of life, the ambulance crew takes over or tells you to stop, or the AED tells you to pause.

And remember:

You don't have to feel confident to do something brave.🩷

You can be frightened.

You can be exhausted.

You can desperately wish somebody else was there.

Just keep going until they are. ❤️

Knowing how to start CPR matters.

Having the confidence to keep going matters too.

💛🩷Start CPR. Keep going. Don't stop. 💛🩷

Source: Resuscitation Council UK — Guidelines 2025

09/02/2026

Yesterday was a pretty special day for Pauline's Law.

I had the opportunity to visit the Scottish Parliament and meet with David Barratt SNP to discuss Pauline's Law, the progress made so far and what the next steps might look like.

I won't pretend I wasn't nervous! 😂 Walking into the Scottish Parliament to talk about something that began only a few months ago, following the loss of my mum, felt more than a little surreal.

But it was an incredibly positive and constructive meeting.

We had a really interesting discussion about Pauline's Law, what I hope it can achieve and some of the different ways we might work towards giving every young person the opportunity to gain a recognised emergency first aid qualification before leaving school and entering adulthood.

I came away feeling really encouraged, but also with plenty to think about, explore and learn more about - which I think is a good thing.

David also very kindly took the time to give me a tour of the Parliament afterwards. It was my first time there, so getting the chance to see a little more of it was a lovely bonus - and thankfully by that point I was considerably less nervous than when I arrived! 😂

Thank you, David, for taking the time to meet with me, for listening, asking some really valuable questions and for your continued support for Pauline's Law. It is genuinely very much appreciated.

A few months ago, Pauline's Law was simply an idea born from our family's experience and a determination to try to make something positive come from something incredibly difficult.

Yesterday, I was sitting in the Scottish Parliament discussing where that idea could go next.

That feels like quite a milestone. 🩷💛

08/30/2026

❤️ Removing Luck From the Equation

“Remove luck from the equation.”

I heard those words from Dr Gareth Clegg when I attended the Scottish Community Resuscitation Conference, held at the University of St Andrews last week, and they have stayed with me ever since.

Not because the idea itself was new to me.

In fact, it put into words something I have thought and spoken about many times since starting Pauline's Law.

When our mum, Pauline, became critically unwell, she was surrounded by people who knew how to help.

People stepped forward.

They performed CPR.

They used a defibrillator.

Some continued helping alongside the ambulance crews when they arrived.

Our mum sadly didn't survive, but those people gave her every possible chance.

And we will always be incredibly grateful that they were there that day and did what they did.

But I have often thought about something since that day.

What if they hadn't been there?

What if the people standing nearby hadn't known what to do?

What if they had desperately wanted to help, but didn't have the knowledge, skills or confidence to step forward?

Our mum was fortunate to be surrounded by people who knew how to help - and who acted quickly without hesitation.

Someone else might not be so fortunate.

And that, at the moment, is where the luck comes into it.

None of us can control when or where a medical emergency will happen.

We can't control who will become ill or injured.

And sadly, even when everything possible is done, we can't guarantee the outcome.

But there are some things we can try to change.

We can give more people the chance to know how to help.

When an emergency happens, professional help may already be on its way.

But those first critical minutes are happening here and now.

And very often, the first person in a position to help isn't a paramedic, doctor or nurse.

It's the person who is already there.

A husband or wife.

A parent.

A son or daughter.

A friend.

A colleague.

A passer-by.

Someone who suddenly finds themselves in a situation they never expected to be in and very quickly has to decide:

Do I know what to do? And do I have the confidence to do it?

That might mean recognising that something is seriously wrong and calling 999.

It might mean starting CPR.

Using a defibrillator.

Helping someone who is choking.

Controlling severe bleeding.

Or simply having enough knowledge and confidence to step forward and do something while professional help is on its way.

That is one of the reasons I believe so strongly in emergency first aid education.

And it's why Pauline's Law isn't simply about teaching one lifesaving skill.

The aim is for every young person to have the opportunity to gain a recognised emergency first aid qualification before they leave school and enter adulthood.

There is already some fantastic first aid and CPR education taking place in schools, and that is something I want Pauline's Law to recognise, learn from and build upon.

What I'm increasingly learning is that first aid education can take different forms, with different opportunities available to young people in different settings.

The purpose of Pauline's Law isn't to replace the good work that is already happening.

It's about building on that work and exploring how we can work towards ensuring every young person has the same opportunity to reach a recognised standard in emergency first aid before leaving school.

That could help create a consistent baseline of emergency first aid knowledge and practical skills for every young person, while still allowing flexibility in how that learning is delivered.

I don't simply want young people to have heard about these skills or perhaps tried them once.

I want every young person to have the opportunity to learn them, practise them and leave school knowing that they have demonstrated them to a recognised standard - along with the confidence to use them.

And for me, the importance of that goes far beyond their time at school.

Because those young people grow up.

They become our colleagues.

Our neighbours.

Our friends.

Our partners.

Our parents.

They work in shops, offices, factories and businesses.

They attend concerts and football matches.

They travel on buses and trains.

They raise families and become part of communities across Scotland.

And wherever life takes them, those skills go with them.

I don't know when or where every person who helped our mum learned what to do.

But somewhere along the way, they had gained that knowledge.

And on the day our family desperately needed it, they carried that knowledge with them - and they used it.

That's what I want for the generations who come after us.

Imagine what we could gradually create if, year after year, more young people entered adulthood knowing what to do in an emergency.

More people, in more places, with the knowledge, skills and confidence to help.

We could never guarantee that somebody who becomes critically ill or injured will have a trained person standing beside them.

But we could make it far less dependent on chance.

Not because we expect young people to become doctors, paramedics or emergency responders.

But much more simply because, throughout our lives, any one of us could suddenly find ourselves being that bystander.

At home.

At work.

At school.

In shops.

At sporting events.

On the street.

And one day, somebody we love - or somebody we've never met before - may need us to use what we know.

At another conference I recently watched online, the Scottish Cardiac Arrest Symposium 2026, Liam Sagi said something else that stayed with me:

“None of us can change everything - but every one of us can change something.”

I think that's incredibly relevant to Pauline's Law.

I can't prevent every emergency.

I can't guarantee that every life will be saved.

And Pauline's Law can't remove every element of luck from what happens when somebody suddenly becomes critically ill or injured.

But perhaps we can remove some of it.

We can give more young people knowledge.

We can give them practical skills.

We can help give them the confidence to step forward.

And, year after year, we can send more people out into our communities carrying those skills with them.

Perhaps one day, having someone nearby who knows what to do in those first critical minutes won't depend quite so much on luck.

We can't remove luck from every part of an emergency.

But together, perhaps we can remove some of it from the equation. 🩷💛

08/28/2026

🩷💛 First Aid Friday #7 💛🩷

When someone has a cardiac arrest, every minute matters.

In the UK, fewer than 1 in 10 people survive an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest.

But there is something that the people around them can do which can make a huge difference:

Start CPR. Call 999. Get a defibrillator if you can. Act quickly.

For every minute someone is in cardiac arrest without CPR and defibrillation, their chance of survival can decrease by up to 10%.

That's why what happens in those first few minutes - before an ambulance arrives - matters so much.

So, would you know how to perform chest compressions?

❤️ If someone is unresponsive, call 999 immediately.

The ambulance call handler can help you assess their breathing and will talk you through what to do.

If they are unresponsive and not breathing normally, start CPR.

❤️ How to perform chest compressions on an adult:

👉 Kneel beside them.

👉 Place the heel of one hand in the centre of their chest, on the lower half of the breastbone.

👉 Place your other hand on top and interlock your fingers.

👉 Keep your arms straight and position your shoulders directly above your hands.

👉 Push down firmly to a depth of 5–6 cm.

👉 Let the chest come all the way back up after each compression — but keep your hands in position.

👉 Keep compressing at a rate of 100–120 times per minute.

And importantly...

Keep interruptions to chest compressions to an absolute minimum.

If somebody else is there, ask them to find a defibrillator while you continue CPR.

When the defibrillator arrives, switch it on and follow its instructions. Anyone can use one — you don't need to be trained.

Continue CPR and follow the instructions given by the defibrillator and 999 call handler until professional help takes over, the person clearly begins to wake, you become too exhausted to continue, or it becomes unsafe.

💛🩷 And remember - the bystander is where the Chain of Survival begins 💛🩷

Before the paramedics arrive, it is the person already there who can recognise that something is wrong, call 999, begin CPR and help get a defibrillator to the casualty.

Those first actions can give someone the best possible chance while professional help is on its way.

The Chain of Survival describes the series of actions that can give someone experiencing a cardiac arrest their best chance of survival - and I'll explain what each of those links means in more detail in a future post.

You don't need to be a doctor, paramedic or healthcare professional to start CPR.

You just need to be willing to act.

Because when someone's heart stops, the person standing beside them may be their best chance until professional help arrives. ❤️

Another huge thank you to Karen McDonald from KM First Aid for kindly reviewing this week's First Aid Friday, helping to ensure the information shared is clear and accurate. ❤️

📚 Sources: Resuscitation Council UK – Adult Basic Life Support Guidelines 2025; Resuscitation Council UK – Defibrillation guidance.

08/23/2026

I've spoken recently about how asking questions can sometimes take us somewhere we weren't expecting to go.

On Wednesday, I asked:

“What does emergency first aid mean to you?”

At the time, I thought I knew my answer.

I thought about what emergency first aid meant from the perspective of the person receiving it, or their family. And naturally, my answer came from what those incredible people did for our mum when she desperately needed help.

But it turns out I hadn't quite finished answering that question.

And strangely, it wasn't another big question that made me realise it.

It was a completely different - and much simpler - one:

“What am I going to write about for this week's First Aid Friday?”

The answer was choking.

And somehow, that one little question took me somewhere I absolutely wasn't expecting to go.

Back almost three decades, to something that happened when I was about six years old.

I genuinely didn't expect to be writing this post.

In fact, I think this may be one of the most surprising things I've discovered since starting Pauline's Law.

Because while I was writing about choking, I suddenly remembered something I hadn't really thought about in years - and certainly hadn't thought about in the context of Pauline's Law before.

And it completely stopped me in my tracks.

My mum may actually have saved my life.

I was choking on a boiled sweet.

It had become completely lodged in my throat. I couldn't breathe and I had reached the point where I was turning purple.

My Mum panicked initially.

She was desperately trying different things she thought might help me, but nothing was working and the sweet wasn't moving.

And then, somewhere amongst all of that fear and chaos, something came back to her.

She remembered something she had once seen on television about what to do when somebody was choking.

So she tried it.

And it worked.

She managed to dislodge the sweet.

She couldn't possibly have known when she first saw it that one day she would need to remember it to help one of her own children.

Because I was so young, I don't really remember what happened.

But my Mum did.

In fact, she never ever forgot how she felt in that moment. Even decades later, it had stayed with her.

The fear. The worry. Feeling sick to her stomach as she watched her little girl unable to breathe.

And yet, despite all of that fear, she had the confidence to try something she'd remembered.

I've obviously known that story for most of my life.

But strangely, until I started writing about choking this week, I had never really connected it with Pauline's Law.

And now that I have, it feels incredibly poignant.

I have to admit, even writing this now gives me goosebumps.

There's something almost surreal about the parallel.

When I was a little girl and couldn't breathe, my Mum was frightened, but she remembered something she had once seen and stepped forward to help me.

Decades later, when our Mum desperately needed help herself, other people stepped forward to help her.

I genuinely don't know how I've never connected those two moments before.

But now that I have, I don't think I'll ever be able to think about Pauline's Law in quite the same way again.

When our mum became critically unwell, it was members of the public and staff who stepped forward to help her.

They performed CPR, used a defibrillator and continued trying to help until and alongside the emergency services.

Those people are the inspiration behind Pauline's Law.

And yet, long before any of this happened, our mum had once been that person for me.

She was the person standing beside somebody who couldn't breathe.

She was frightened.

She had to remember what to do.

And then she stepped forward and did it.

And because she did, she may just have saved her six-year-old daughter's life.

And that brings me all the way back to the question I started with:

What does emergency first aid mean to the person receiving it?

When I was six, it meant our mum being able to help me.

When our mum needed emergency help many years later, it meant other people stepping forward to help her.

It turns out I had more than one answer to my own question.

And that's one of the reasons I believe these skills should be something every young person has the opportunity to learn before they leave school, so they enter adulthood with a recognised emergency first aid qualification.

Giving them knowledge and skills they may one day need to remember - and the confidence to use them.

Because we simply don't know who might need us or when.

A stranger.

A friend.

A colleague.

Our child.

Our mum.

That's why Pauline's Law matters.

It began because of what people did for our mum.

But somehow, all these years later, I've realised something I hadn't connected before - until now.

A very long time ago, Pauline herself had already shown me exactly why it matters. ❤️

08/22/2026

Today I had the opportunity to attend the Scottish Community Resuscitation Conference 2026 - and to say I enjoyed it would be a complete understatement.

In fact, I loved every minute of it! ❤️

I learned so much - and took pages and pages of notes! 😂

It was an incredibly informative day, covering so many different aspects of resuscitation, cardiac arrest, CPR and defibrillation, and I came away with a huge amount to think about.

I already know that some of what I heard today is going to find its way into future Pauline's Law posts, because there were so many important messages, statistics, discussions and ideas that I would really like to share.

But more than anything, today reinforced something that sits right at the heart of Pauline's Law for me:

What happens in those first few minutes of an emergency really matters.

CPR and early defibrillation can play such an important role when somebody suffers a cardiac arrest, and today was another reminder of why increasing awareness, knowledge and confidence amongst ordinary members of the public is so important.

I also want to say a huge thank you to Karen McDonald from KM First Aid for giving me the opportunity to attend today.

Karen, I genuinely got so much from it - both personally and in terms of Pauline's Law - and I'm incredibly grateful to you for thinking of me and allowing me to be there. ❤️

One of the things I've loved most since starting Pauline's Law is how much I've had the opportunity to learn.

I didn't come into this with a medical background. There is still an enormous amount I don't know, and days like today remind me just how valuable it is to listen to people with knowledge, expertise and lived experience, ask questions, take it all in - and then think about what it might mean for Pauline's Law.

And believe me... I have plenty to think about after today! 😂

There are already several things in my notebook that I've put a very enthusiastic star beside because I want to come back to them. ⭐😂

So rather than trying to squeeze everything I learned into one enormous post tonight, I'm not even going to try!

I'll share it properly over the coming weeks and months.

For tonight, I simply wanted to say what a fantastic experience it was, how much I learned, and how grateful I am that I had the opportunity to be there.

I went along hoping to learn more.

I came home even more curious than I was when I arrived.

And somehow, I think that's probably a very good thing. ❤️