THE family of a 27-year-old who died in a motorbike accident have raised nearly £10,000 to install new medical equipment in rural areas.

Ben Flitcroft, from Colchester Drive, Farnworth, died on July 1 while riding his bike on a remote road near Hellifield, Skipton.

He had been riding with his father and a friend, but was in an area which was difficult for emergency services to reach.

His girlfriend, Gabriella Luby, suggested that a defibrillator could have helped him, which inspired her family and Mr Flitcroft's family to work together on the Ben Foundation – a group aimed at installing the medical equipment in areas often visited by bikers.

Now the foundation has reached its first major milestone, with enough money raised to install a pair of defibrillators, starting with one at Rivington Hall Barn.

Kurt Luby, Gabriella's father, is also a motorcyclist, and said he was "delighted" that people had donated to the group.

He added: "It was evident that when Ben had his accident that it took a while to get to him, not through an fault of the emergency services, but because of where he was.

"My daughter was the first one to bring it up, suggesting that something could have been done if there had been a defibrillator nearby, which I thought would have been useful.

"To be honest, I was shocked that there weren't any in many rural areas because they can be useful for walkers and cyclists as well as bikers, but they are not cheap either.

"It's helped to keep Ben's memory alive and I think he would have been really proud of us doing this in his honour. Hopefully, it's going to help other people."

Police are still thought to be investigating the incident and an inquest into Mr Flitcroft's death will also be held.

The group is also planning on holding a 50-mile charity motorcycle ride between Farnworth and the site of the crash, in the hope of raising more funding.

In order to donate to the Ben Foundation, search the group's name on Facebook or find it at www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/bikeremergencynow