Circular silver and blue enamel badge of the General Nursing Council for England and Wales, on reverse engraved "G.L. Reed, SRN., 28-6-35", English, 1935

The back of this silver and enamel badge has the engraving “G.L. REED. SRN. 28-6-35”. Gertrude Lillian Baker neé Reed qualified as a State Registered Nurse on 28 June 1935 and received this badge to mark the occasion. Also engraved on the back was her registration number. It remained in her own collection until it was donated to the Science Museum after her death in 1982.

State Registered Nurses (SRN) came into being in England and Wales after the introduction of the Nurses Registration Act of 1919. The newly formed General Nursing Council regulated formal training, examination and registration of nurses. It also approved the training schools that would-be nurses were required to attend. On graduation, successful students gained the professional qualification of State Registered Nurse (SRN), which greatly improved their professional status. The shoulder flashes are shown here with a SRN hat (1982-561/148) and a SRN shoulder flashes (1982-561/150).