Heart of West London

A game-changing partnership to raise awareness of cardiac health and save lives

Changing the game for cardiac health

Together, we can save lives

From ground-breaking research and life-saving screenings, to CPR education and defibrillator access, the Heart of West London (HoWL) partnership aims to increase awareness of cardiac health issues and ensure everyone has the skills to save a life.

Using the power of sport and our platform as a Premier League club, the Heart of West London brings together key players in the cardiac health world to make a difference. We are Brentford FC, Brentford FC Community Sports Trust, Royal Brompton and Harefield Hospitals Charity, Cardiac Risk in the Young, Resuscitation Council UK, London Ambulance Chaity and A-K-A Day.

There will be many moments and events throughout the season for you to get involved, increase your knowledge, donate and save lives.

Why we care

It affects us all.

For Brentford FC, our community and wider football family, heart disease has changed our lives.

Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death globally and it does not discriminate. Heart and circulatory diseases cause around a quarter of all deaths in the UK; that's more than 160,000 deaths each year, that's one death every three minutes.

30% of these deaths are premature and performing CPR can more than double the chances of survival in some cases.

Together we can save lives.

Close to our hearts

Cardiac health issues is a cause close to our hearts. Our technical director, Robert Rowan, tragically died aged 28 in November 2018 after suffering a fatal cardiomyopathy episode. Rob’s life was cut short due to an undiagnosed heart condition. Unfortunately, the number of seemingly healthy people dying from cardiac issues in the UK is not rare. In the UK, it's estimated that 12 people, under 35, die each week from undiagnosed heart conditions.

Rob is fondly remembered and left a lasting legacy thanks to his work in scouting, the recruitment of players and creation of our B Team. The Club is proud to continue campaigning in his honour.

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Close to home

We are in a 'cardiac hotspot' in Brentford. This means there are higher incidence of cardiac arrests and lower levels of bystander CPR and lower access to lifesaving defibrillators. We want to change this.

Our community is diverse, meaning many of us will be disproportionally affected by cardiac health related issues.

Evidence confirms that out-of-hospital cardiac arrest disproportionately affects people from certain ethnic minority backgrounds and access to CPR training is also significantly lower. Studies also suggest that women are less likely to receive CPR from bystands and have lower survival rates at each successive stage of care compared with men.

In the Borough of Hounslow, there are around 21,000 people living with heart and circulatory diseases which causes 35 deaths each month.

Cardiac health is a very personal issue that hits close to home here in West London. We want to make a difference and improve the hearts of our community.

Cardiac health in the UK

Heart and circulatory diseases cause around a quarter of all deaths in the UK. 30% of these deaths are premature and performing CPR can more than double the chances of survival in some cases.

Deaths per year (UK)160,000

Out of hospital cardiac arrest survival (London)1 in 11