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Hundreds treated

I wrote last week about the early history of the St John Ambulance movement in Newark.

The brigade currently has a display at Newark Library which tells of the wide variety of work it undertakes and is the culmination of a year-long recruitment drive.

The present Newark division of St John Ambulance came into being in 1910 and served with distinction throughout both world wars.

St John personnel from Newark contributed their medical knowledge and practical skills both on the field of battle and on the home front.

By 1950, after numerous changes of premises, the division was operating from the YMCA hut on Northgate with equipment being stored at Holes Brewery maltkiln in Albert Street.

This, of course, was far from ideal and so when, in 1951, the opportunity arose to acquire permanent premises of its own, the division embraced the proposal wholeheartedly.

A parcel of land at the junction of Queen's Road and Appletongate had become available and the division quickly set about purchasing a former army hut from the Bowbridge Road army camp at a cost of £180.

With the addition of modern conveniences such as sanitation and mains electricity, this hut (officially named the George Reed Memorial Hut in honour of its first superintendent) continues to serve as the division's HQ to this day.

With the creation of a permanent base for its activities, Newark St John continued to grow and diversify throughout the Fifties and early Sixties.

In 1959 it helped establish the blood donor service in Newark. A few years earlier two new divisions had been formed; a ladies' nursing division (1952) and a girls' nursing cadet division (1954).

Superintendent Mrs Ivy Hollingworth hit upon the idea of collecting packet tops from boxes of soap powder which could be traded in for 1d each.

As 2,500 tops were collected (not least by ambulance superintendent Mr Jack Bullimore who worked as a refuse collector in Newark), a total of £25 was raised - just sufficient to provide uniforms for the two new divisions.

After the great advances made in the Fifties, the Sixties and Seventies proved something of a lean time for St John in Newark. The quasi-military style of the organisation no longer appealed to many youngsters imbued with the fashionable ideals of the era and membership began to fall.

However, some progress was still made with the HQ hut being extended with a new store room, lavatory block and kitchen.

In 1976 a new first aid post for use by the brigade was opened at Newark Showground and in 1978 a new youth section was inaugurated - the St John Juniors (now The Badgers) for children aged eight to ten.

Within two months membership had risen to 70. As the Eighties dawned, a new optimism was felt throughout the division.

Membership was again on the increase and several important firsts were achieved: the Newark division became the first in the county to introduce identity cards for officers on duty; first to use short wave radios to aid communications at large scale events and the first in the county to buy a purpose-built mobile casualty unit.

Advanced first aid equipment such as medical gases, resuscitation and aspiration equipment and spinal immobilisation equipment was also purchased, making the Newark brigade one of the most efficient in the county.

The Nineties have seen demands on St John Ambulance increase still further and when Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait in 1990 all divisions were placed on a war footing.

At the time it was feared that if the Gulf conflict escalated, allied casualties could reach 20,000 and Newark St John was put on standby to help staff a 400-bed military hospital at the Chilwell army camp.

Thankfully, such measures were not required. Looking back over the history of St John Ambulance since the last war, its important contribution to the town may be quickly illustrated by some pertinent statistics.

In 1961 the division attended 14 events and spent 27 hours on duty (27 casualties treated). In 1974 these figures had risen to 19, 63 and 51 respectively.

Last year it attended 293 events putting in 10,560 hours and treating 920 casualties. In 1995 the Breath of Life campaign saw more than 3,000 local youngsters and adults trained in first aid and in 1998 Newark's membership has reached a new record high with about 70 adults and 100 youth members.

The number of events attended during the year has also reached a new level, standing at over 300. Demand for the services of St Johns Ambulance has never been greater and only last month a new page in the history of the Newark division was started when the Newark Crusader group took ownership of the Crusader river boat from Nottingham.

The boat will provide a service to the disabled, elderly and those with special needs by giving free trips along the River Trent commencing spring 1999.

With developments such as these (and others which there has not been room to mention) it is easy to appreciate how St John Ambulance in Newark today is at its strongest since the time when the division was first established more than 80 years ago.

In compiling this article I am indebted to Newark divisional training officer Mr Philip Jessop for information supplied.

ABOVE: Members of the Newark St John Ambulance Brigade pictured in the Fifties outside their hut at the junction of Appletongate and Queen's Road. Left to right they are: Sergeant Etches, Mr J. Hickman, Mr J. Webb, Mr A. Cavey, Mr G. Keeton, Ambulance Superintendent Mr J. Bullimore, Mr P. Johnson, Divisional Officer Mr A. Morley, Mr R. Otter, unknown, Mr F. Parlett and Mr Watson.

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