Jamie Rees was 18 when he went into cardiac arrest on New Year's Day 2022. A defibrillator was locked behind a school door. We're his family - and we're making sure no one else has to go through it.
Jay · JJ · OurJay
Jamie - Jay, JJ, OurJay - was born on 25 November 2003. A keen fisherman from age two, an all-night gamer, a top-of-class trainee plumber. Shy in the cutest way. The brightest star in life and now the brightest star in any sky.
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Jamie's Law would make it mandatory for every police vehicle in the UK to carry a defibrillator. Today only armed-response cars do.
A short film about Jamie, and the family who started OurJay in his name. What happened on the day itself is just below.
What follows is the timeline of New Year's Day 2022. We share it because the gaps in it - the locked cabinet, the missing kit, the minutes lost - are the gaps we now spend our lives closing.
Age 18. Out with friends on New Year's Day. A sudden cardiac arrest. His friends start CPR.
A defibrillator is on a nearby school site, but it cannot be reached. The clock keeps running.
An officer reaches Jamie first. Police vehicles do not carry AEDs as standard. CPR continues; chest compressions alone cannot restart the heart.
Paramedics arrive with a defibrillator and restart his heart, but his brain has been without oxygen for too long. Through organ donation, Jamie's legacy goes on to save five lives, including an eight-month-old baby.
Naomi and family register the foundation as a UK charity (number 1200846) to put defibrillators on walls.
From that day on
Not another family. Not another minute lost.
OurJay Foundation raises awareness of the importance of having 24/7 publicly accessible defibrillators, secures the funding to install them, and trains the people around them. We work with councils, schools, businesses and community groups across the UK.
Every pound funds a defibrillator cabinet, a bleed kit, a CPR class, or a sign on a wall that helps a stranger save a life.
We push for CPR and AED awareness in every school, every workplace, every council across the UK - because the kit on the wall is only useful if people know what to do.
Hands-only CPR. Confident defib use. Bleed control basics. Sessions for communities, schools and businesses so the response is ready before the emergency.
We fund and install public access defibrillators and bleed control kits - the equipment that turns a bystander into a first responder.
A defibrillator delivers an electric shock to a heart in cardiac arrest. Get one on the chest fast enough and survival jumps from 6% to over 70%.
A serious bleed can be fatal in under five minutes. Bleed kits put tourniquets and trauma dressings in the hands of bystanders - the people who are always there first.
Every minute defibrillation is delayed reduces survival by roughly 10% (Resuscitation Council UK).
Hands-only chest compressions keep the brain alive.
The shock that restarts the heart - the kit we install.
Paramedics take over. The patient gets a chance.
Around 30,000 out-of-hospital cardiac arrests happen in the UK each year (British Heart Foundation). With CPR and a defibrillator applied within minutes, survival jumps from single digits to more than half. We're building a UK where the kit is never the bottleneck.
Publicly accessible AEDs
installed and live on the OurJay map
Lives saved so far
by an OurJay AED or a bleed kit in an OurJay cabinet
Raised by the family
since New Year's Day 2022
Warwickshire Police vehicles equipped
with iPAD AEDs via Home Office funding - #JamiesLaw in action
Sources: British Heart Foundation, Resuscitation Council UK, OurJay Foundation records.
From a £1,500 fundraiser to a British Empire Medal in four years. The awards belong to Jamie - they're the public's way of recognising what he started, and what his family refuses to let go of.
Awarded to Naomi Rees-Issitt in the King's New Year's Honours List. The letter arrived on Jamie's birthday, 25 November.
OurJay Foundation is a UK registered charity - every donation is auditable, every penny accounted for.
Every trustee is a member of Jamie's family. No executives, no offices, no salaries - just five people who decided to turn a worst day into a national mission.
Jamie's mum
Trustee · Chair
Jamie and Callum are her whole world; OurJay is her way of continuing to take care of Jamie. Awarded a BEM in the King's Honours for the campaign.
"Aunty Trace" · Jamie's godmother
Trustee · Secretary
Foundation ideas, promotion, event arrangements, and entertainment - including music and bands for the OurJay Festival.
"Bro" · Jamie's older brother
Trustee
Jamie's biggest inspiration and 'always my number 1'. Supports the foundation with ideas, fundraising, training-tool design, and social media.
"Aunty Vanna" · Jamie's aunt
Trustee
'My little best mate from the very beginning.' Held a very special bond with Jamie from the day he was born. Supports events, ideas, and merchandise.
"Mate" · Jamie's step-dad
Trustee
Jamie's step-dad, but more importantly his mate. Handles defib maintenance, emergency replacements, and food/inflatables at the OurJay Festival.
Whether you've got £5, a community hall, or a Saturday morning to spare - there's a way you can keep the next person alive.
£75 funds a CPR information session. £1,200 puts a community-accessible defibrillator on a wall.
Run a marathon. Bake a cake. Host a quiz. We'll send a fundraising pack and cheer you on.
Got a wall? A shopfront, school, pub or village hall? We'll fund and fit the kit.
Help your team build confidence in life-saving skills. CPR and AED sessions for community groups, schools and small businesses in our network.
Every defib we put on a wall, and every police vehicle we equip, is part-funded by businesses who chose to put their name behind Jamie's. Thank you to the partners below.
The Killerz
The UK's No.1 tribute to The Killers
Molly Gone Mad
Charity ambassador
Courthouse Band
Live music partner
JRP Electrical Services
Defib installations
Top Marks Electrical
Defib installations
Netix Digital
Digital partner
Star Self Store
Rugby storage partner
Not Just Travel
Travel fundraising partner
Mark Hurst Photography
Event photography
The Kitchens Inc
Warwickshire ambassador
ACJ Financial Planning
Financial planning partner
Ellis Brooke Estate Agents
Local estate agency partner
Rugby Distillery
Crafted in the fields of Rugby
iD.Genie
Print, signage & promotional
Want to put your business name on the next defib? Get in touch and we'll match you with a community that needs one.
Defibs going up, families saying thank you, officers picking up the kit. Follow along for the day-to-day of the campaign.
Two officers, two AEDs, one mission. #JamiesLaw rolling out.
Where it all started. The Ashlawn School defib in Jamie's name.
The kit going into West Midlands Police vehicles.
Naomi telling Jamie's story - and how he saved five lives.
Warwickshire Police: 28 vehicles equipped via Home Office funding.
A defib on a wall, ready 24/7. This is what your fundraising buys.
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