St John Ambulance Association

St John Ambulance is a charitable, volunteer-led medical organisation dedicated to practicing and teaching first aid in England.

1887: The St John Ambulance Brigade was formed to provide first aid services at public events. The brigade was first deployed in this year for Queen Victoria’s Golden Jubilee.

1888: The Order of St John was granted a royal charter by Queen Victoria.

1908: The organisation volunteered at the London Olympics, starting a long-standing relationship with the charity and sporting events.

1914-18: St John Ambulance joined forces with the Red Cross to form the Joint War Committee which provided aid for war casualties.

1922: The St John Ambulance Cadets was formed which provided first aid training to young children between 11-18.

1937: St John Ambulance provided first aid to 9000 members of the public during the Coronation of King George VI.

1939-54: The organisation once again joined with the Red Cross, and the Joint War organisation again provided first aid to those injured in war.

1948: The NHS was founded, altering the role of the organisation to support local ambulance trusts in times of need. Before this, St John Ambulance was often the only provider of ambulance services across many parts of England.

1958: St John Ambulance, the British Red Cross Society and St Andrew’s Ambulance Association published a First Aid Manual, which is still in edition today. It provides instructions on how to give first aid to various medical conditions and injuries.

1981: First aid at work regulations were brought in and St John Ambulance started offering training in the workplace.

2005: The organisation supported the London Ambulance Service during the 7/7 bombings on London transport.

2013: In one given year, St John Ambulance trained around 278,000 adults and 91,000 children through its workplace and school first aid programmes.