Black and white photograph of a large group of female nurses in uniform walking up the steps of St Paul's Cathedral. Behind them, a small crowd of onlookers stand at the roadside.

Uniform

From helping the wearer to stand out in a crowd, to evoking a sense of pride and belonging, nothing elicits such strong and divisive opinions amongst St John Ambulance volunteers as uniform.

Until recently, the uniform worn by Cadets was a simplified version of their adult counterparts. The first Ambulance Cadets wore black shorts and a grey flannel shirt, with a black cap and knitted tie. The Nursing Cadet uniform was, by Victorian standards, a simple, practical and modest grey cotton dress with a rounded white collar and a white handkerchief-style cap. Despite changes in fashions and duties, dress regulations remained little altered until 1968 leading to practical concerns amongst its wearers. It wasn’t until 1975, that Nursing Cadets were permitted to wear trousers on occasions where a dress was unsuitable. In 2010, St John Ambulance introduced a new uniform consisting of a green service delivery shirt and black combat trousers. For the first time, all St John Ambulance members wore the same uniform.

Stories:

From the collection: