A Burgess Hill father whose daughter suffered severe burns after tipping a hot cup of tea over herself is calling on people to make sure they learn basic first aid skills.

Research by first aid charity St John Ambulance shows more than half of parents in Brighton and Hove lack the skills necessary to save their child in the event of a life-threatening accident.

Craig Radmall, a volunteer at the charity’s Brighton unit, drew on his training when the accident happened to his one-year-old daughter Violet last year.

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The 23-year-old knew to run cold water over the burnt part of her upper body to cool it down and that, due to the size of the affected area, an ambulance needed to be called to their Burgess Hill home.

Violet was taken to a specialist burns unit at Queen Victoria Hospital in East Grinstead where she underwent a range of treatments including skin grafts.

One year on her scars have healed well, which doctors say is thanks to the swift first aid from her dad.

Mr Radmall said: “The training I’d been given took over completely and I didn’t even have to think about what I was doing as it was a knee jerk reaction.

“Everything I did was instinctive and this has really helped Violet in the long run in terms of recovery.

“Knowing what to do has meant my daughter has minimal scarring so my message to parents is simple – learn first aid as accidents can happen anywhere.”

The charity has launched a hard-hitting national TV advertising campaign urging parents to consider how they would cope if their child suffered a life-threatening accident or emergency.

The campaign also encourages people to learn basic first aid.

Regional director for St John Ambulance in the south east, Mark Farmer, said: “It’s devastating to find that over half of parents wouldn’t have the first aid confidence to save their own child’s life.

“Our first aid volunteers can’t be everywhere so we’ve developed an online experience to help more people be the difference between a life lost and a life saved.”

Visit www.sja.org.uk/savetheboy to watch the advert and learn first aid skills.