A 10-year-old saved her dad's life with CPR - she learned at Cubs.

Dominic MacVarish, 51, is "forever grateful" for Ava's actions after he suffered a cardiac arrest. "

Ava, who is now 11, reacted quickly when her dad told her he might be having a heart attack.

She performed CPR while on the phone to the emergency services in their home in Sonning Common, Reading.

Dominic was rushed to the Royal Berkshire Hospital, where he remained in coma for 10 days in intensive care.

Ava, who had learned CPR with her local Cubs group, said she tried to remain calm but she was "quite panicked" by the incident."

Her dad added that if it wasn't for her, it would have been a bad ending.

Dominic, a mergers and acquisitions corporate director, said: "I feel lucky she was there. "

"The great thing about her is the way she is able to, when the pressure is on,"

deliver on things.

"She was able to just go 'right this is what I've got to do and it doesn't matter how nasty it is."

"She is very logical, very mechanical and thankfully because of that she's not phased by it."

Ava, a Year 6 student, was able to keep her father alive until paramedics arrived on February 25.

She said: "I remember him coming into my room telling me that he is either having a heart attack or a panic attack."

"He called the ambulance and unlocked the front door. "

"He then went downstairs, sat on the settee, put his tea down and then started having a cardiac arrest."

"I pulled him over, did CPR, went to go get the neighbours, they came over and I called back the ambulance."

"They were giving me instructions. Then my mum turned up with my other sister."

"I did CPR on his back but that was still effective because that's what they did in Covid"

"I was quite panicked. But I learned CPR at Cubs which I joined three years ago."

Dominic says he doesn't remember what happened to him, only brief moments when he was in cardiac.

He was in coma for 10 days after the cardiac arrest.

Doctors told him it was a stress related heart attack.

He said: "They just said that the brain is very clever and if something's traumatic it will just completely delete it. It is not like it's patchy there is nothing there at all."

"If you are under stress for a long enough period of time all the plaque apparently can break off the artery which of course clogs it."

"And when it clogs it, the blood doesn't go and your heart stops - that's when you go from heart attack to cardiac arrest. "

"I am incredible thankful for what she did and lucky she was here too."

He's on blood thinners to help circulation and he is feeling more positive.

Dominic added that both him and Ava are keen for as many children to learn CPR as possible.

Ava believes it is an important skill for children her age to learn.

Dominic said: "One of the things kids need to learn at school from about the age of eight is CPR and basic medical training."

"And then a refresher course should then be given to them two years later and see what percentage of people can do it correctly."

Asked if his Ava had now become his favourite of his three daughters, Dominic laughed and said: "You have got to keep the balance. I will try and spoil the three of them."

"She [Ava] is very logical, very mechanical and thankfully because of that she's not phased by it."

"The great thing about her is the way she is able to, when the pressure is on,"

deliver things.

"She was able to just go 'right this is what I've got to do and it doesn't matter how nasty it is.'"

"You show her a climbing wall and she's not a big fan of heights but she would just get to the top and do it."