Gateshead 10-year-old praised for bravery after phoning 999 for sister

A 10-year-old from Gateshead has been awarded a bravery certificate by the ambulance service.

Lucia Charlton has been recognised for calling 999 with concerns about her two-year-old sister Blake, who has epilepsy and was having a seizure at the time.

Paramedics from the North East Ambulance Service (NEAS) were deployed to their family home in the early hours of Wednesday 19 October 2022.

After receiving her award, Lucia said: "I was shocked when I found out, but it feels good. The staff were really nice when I had to call 999 and I’m happy I was able to help my sister when she needed it."

One of the paramedics who attended Lucia's house, Matthew Potts, said the child "showed maturity beyond her age".

"Blake’s big sister Lucia stayed amazingly calm and called 999 before unlocking the doors and directing us quickly and calmly in from the street upstairs and to mam and baby so we could quickly assess and treat little Blake.

"Lucia's calmness and quick action ensured her little sister could be assessed and treated quickly before moving to the QE hospital.

"She should be very proud of how she managed the situation and we wanted her to know how impressed we were by her. 

"Meeting Lucia and her family again has been really special – we don’t often get to meet patients and families and it’s lovely to see them again to be able to recognise Lucia’s bravery."

Lucia’s mum Stephanie Wilde said: "I’m so proud of Lucia. I had taught her how to do Blake’s rescue medication, so she knew what to do, but this was the first time she’d had to do it. It was amazing to see how well she reacted.

"I cried when we got the letter saying the ambulance service wanted to award Lucia for her bravery. The letter arrived on her birthday as well, which was even more special."

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