St John Ambulance opens Black Country volunteer recruitment
Earlier this month, St John Ambulance opened recruitment for adult volunteers in the Black Country for the first time in over a year. The charity is seeking more local volunteers to support their lifesaving work, to strengthen community health and first aid resilience.
Volunteers from St John Ambulance have been serving the communities of the Black Country for over a century, and are seeking volunteers to increase their impact even further.
The current recruitment campaign, which closes on 10 December, includes vacancies for Community First Aiders and Youth Leaders. Community First Aiders provide first aid on events and teach first aid awareness and lifesaving skills in the local community. Meanwhile youth leaders support the local cadet and badger units in Blackheath, Halesowen and Stourbridge, ensuring that young people learn vital skills to equip them for the future.
The St John Ambulance Stour Valley Community Network, which covers Halesowen, Stourbridge, Rowley Regis, Oldbury, Cradley Heath and the surrounding areas, is hoping to attract 12 new Community First Aiders and 6 new youth leaders, to add to the 90 strong team of adult volunteers across the area. This will help to facilitate places in youth sections for 1,000 young people on St John Ambulance’s local waiting lists and help build upon the thousands of operational hours delivered by local volunteers to support St John Ambulance event first aid operations.
The network’s lead, Philip McCahill, described how new volunteers would be supported: “We’re excited to be welcoming new volunteers into the network for the first time since 2023, to support us in delivering first aid on events, teaching the public lifesaving skills, and running our amazing youth programmes. All volunteers will be provided with full training for their role and all the uniform they need and we will cover their expenses. They don’t need any prior experience, just a passion to care for people in the community, a willingness to learn and give their free time.”
McCahill, who volunteers for St John Ambulance in his spare time, works as a school leader during weekdays, explained why he would recommend becoming a volunteer: “Joining St John five years ago was the best choice I made. I’ve gained clinical skills, leadership experience and friends for life. I’m immensely proud of our team and I’m sure that those who join us will be made to feel very welcome and thoroughly supported on their volunteering journey.”
St John Ambulance describes itself as the ‘nation’s leading first aid charity’, aiming to ensure no one suffers from a lack of lifesaving first aid when they need it. St John volunteers across the West Midlands play their part in enhancing community first aid resilience by deploying ambulance crews to support NHS trusts, supporting the night-time economy in Birmingham to keep the public safe on nights out, and teaching thousands of people how to save a life with CPR and an AED (automated external defibrillator).
Those who are interested in joining are encouraged to find out more by taking a look at the St John Ambulance Stour Valley Community Network on Facebook, or by searching for @sjastourvalley on Instagram or X (formerly Twitter). Alternatively, volunteers can apply for the roles via linktr.ee/sjastourvalley before the deadline on 10 December.
