Bristol, Bath and the West

First helps Bristol "based charity raise Meningitis awareness.

First in Bristol is supporting Meningitis UK by providing a mega-rear to one of its double "deck buses featuring the warning statement ‘Meningitis can kill in under 4 hours to urge local people to watch out for meningitis over the next six-months.

The advert also portrays a little 11-year-old girl, Louise Greer, who lost both her legs and an arm to meningitis and meningococcal septicaemia at the age of 2 and has since helped Meningitis UK raise awareness of the disease nationwide, as well as thousands of pounds towards their search for a vaccine.

In conjunction with First CBS Outdoor who control all the advertising on First buses have generously allowed Meningitis UK to take this out of advertising revenue, which means the advert is costing the charity nothing.

Simon Cursio, Commercial Director from First Bristol said, "First are really pleased to be able to help such a worthwhile local charity and to be helping the local community. We hope that the bus will help to raise awareness of this devastating disease and help to save the lives of our local residents.'

The bus will also be used to encourage local residents to support the charitys ‘Search 4 a Vaccine Campaign which aims to raise £7million over the next 7 years to help develop a vaccine against Meningitis B and was launched earlier this year. Meningitis B is the most common form of meningitis in the UK, for which there is still no vaccine and accounts for almost 90% of all cases. Adverts inside the bus and other buses in the area will be used to highlight the charitys upcoming events and encourage local support.

Steve Dayman, Chief Executive of Meningitis UK said, "We are really pleased that First have teamed up with Meningitis UK and we are really grateful to both them and CBS. By joining forces we can achieve so much more. As we approach the Winter months when the number of cases of meningitis dramatically rise, the bus will play an important part in highlighting the dangers of the disease and the importance of acting quickly, which can mean the difference between life and death.'


Awareness information such as wallet-sized symptoms cards and ‘What you need to know about Meningitis leaflets will also be distributed through First bus stations and travel shops.

The vehicle will be travelling around the local area for the next 6 months, so keep your eye out!

To support the charitys Search 4 a Vaccine Campaign or find out more about Meningitis UKs work, please phone 0117 373 7373 or visit www.meningitisUK.org