EQUIPMENT that could help save a life should soon be available for public use in Williton.

Local parish councillors this week agreed to buy a defibrillator - a device that provides an electric shock to the heart - for use in emergencies in the village.

The council has been discussing the issue since July and has delayed making a decision a number of times because of concerns over where the equipment could be kept.

But at their monthly meeting on Monday they were told that the Spar supermarket, which opens most days from 7am to 10pm, was willing to have it located in its store.

The council had asked local doctors if the defibrillator could be put on an outside wall of the village's surgery.

But council chairman Cllr Bob McDonald said the doctors felt the surgery was too distant from the village centre and they were concerned about possible vandalism.

Cllr McDonald said the offer from Spar would mean that the equipment would not have to be housed in an exterior box, which would cut the cost.

And he said training courses for the use of the equipment were available.

Councillors are expected to decide which defibrillator to buy at their meeting in January, with the cost expected to be around £1,000.

However, the cost to the council will be offset by a £200 donation from Somerset county councillor Hugh Davies.

Cllr Davies had hoped to make a contribution from his authority's health and well-being fund but was told helping towards the purchase of a defibrillator did not fit the criteria.

So he told councillors that as his newsagents shop would not be opening late for Williton's Christmas festivities last night (Thursday), he would donate the money he would normally spend on treats for customers.