Every secondary school in Scotland will teach pupils how to carry out CPR.

50,000 pupils a year will be taught how to resuscitate someone who has had a cardiac arrest.

All 32 councils have agreed to add the training to the curriculum after a campaign by the British Heart Foundation Scotland.

In Scotland every year, around 3500 people suffer an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest.

Every minute without CPR being started sees the chance of survival drop by around ten per cent.

David McColgan, from the BHF Scotland, said: "International evidence from places like Denmark and Norway has shown that when you train a kid in school that leaves the school and goes into the community.

"It trains mums, it trains dads, it trains aunties and uncles and over a period of time you do eventually create this nation of lifesavers."

A similar policy has been in place in Denmark since 2006. Since then the number of people surviving out-of-hospital cardiac arrests has tripled.

STV News travelled to Copenhagen to learn how the scheme works.

In a classroom at a school on the outskirts of the Danish capital we watched a group of 12 and 13 year-olds learn about the technique.

It took little over an hour for them to hear how to potentially save a life and practise it on special mannequins used to demonstrate the force required to get a heart beating again.

Pupil Johannes Boldt told us: "It was kind of tough but if someone has passed out you need to do it, you need to help him."

Another youngster, Stefan Angelovski, added: "It was good to know how to do it, how to safe a life. I would be able to help."

Medical leaders in the area say the lessons and the additional awareness they have created among the wider population has made a significant difference.

Freddy Lippert, chief executive of Copenhagen's emergency medical services, said: "By teaching a child in school you have a lifesaver for 60 to 70 years.

"The children learn easily and they know within an hour that this is a skill you can master and it makes the difference between life and death."

Alf Dissing was preparing to leave his home near Copenhagen for a holiday to Spain.

He told his wife he was feeling tired - moments later the 58-year-old was unconscious.

Alf had suffered a cardiac arrest.

"I had laid down on the bed and I don't remember any more until almost a week later," he told STV, 18 months later.

"I had been totally blue and effectively died."

His wife called for help but an ambulance would take around 15 minutes to reach their semi-rural home.

Fortunately, a near-neighbour had been trained in CPR and was at the house within a couple of minutes.

Klaus Hedegaard managed to resuscitate Alf.

Klaus said: "He wasn't breathing, he didn't have a pulse. He was dead or dying. Going through my head was 'what are the right steps to do?' I just did it.

"The learning makes you not over stressed, you are very focused on what to do."

Today Alf is well, but knows he owes his life to the rapid help he received. He and his family have since learned the technique themselves.

"If it hadn't been for Klaus I wouldn't be here," he said. "I said many thanks to him and a big hug. He's now a good friend and I'm grateful he was around.

"It's important that everyone can do CPR - every minute counts. I'd never had a history of heart problems, I was just unlucky. But I was lucky my life was saved."