Volunteers on a mission to teach vital 'street first aid' to young people

Young Responders is a new St John Ambulance youth programme offering life-saving street first aid skills for some of the real-life situations young people may find themselves in.

The programme was awarded £1 million through the Recovery Fund, thanks to funds raised by People’s Postcode Lottery players, to help people learn traditional physical first aid skills such as how to put a person in the recovery position, plus street first aid such as dealing with knife wounds, spiking and alcohol and drug intoxication, as well as tips on mental health awareness.

Raisa Stefenescu, 17, a youth volunteer with St John, from East London, appears in a short film to be shown in schools about the Young Responders programme. In the film, she explains, “It is a sad reality, but St John is adapting to the ever-changing needs of communities. I live in Beckton, which is safe in the day, but at night, like a lot of London, it can be unsafe.

"It can be hard to have a happy youth in Beckton,” she explained as she walks past a spot where a 17-year-old boy was stabbed.

Targeting young people in underrepresented areas, Young Responders is geared towards young people at risk of street violence, looked-after young people, those who care for someone at home, and those at risk of not being in education, employment or training (NEET).

As part of the pilot, the St John Young Responders programme team visited schools and colleges in the three target areas in the West Midlands, London and the North East.

A visit to James Brindley Academy in Birmingham as part of the pilot saw pupils keen to learn first aid skills.

Health and social care teacher Iain Grant said: “I thought it was an excellent relevant experience for the students who were really engaged and keen to take part in the role play of knife crime, creating a tourniquet and the mental health activity.

“The pupils have gained valuable first aid skills from this session. I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend inviting St John Ambulance to come and work with our students again. The skills they picked up in this session could one day save a life.”

Bayley Breecher, 15, said, “It was useful. If I was in that position, I would feel more confident in dealing with the situation.”

Currently being delivered in school and colleges, St John Ambulance hopes to partner with existing groups supporting communities to deliver Young Responders in the community and, where possible, involve existing cadets to help deliver Young Responders sessions.

Director of youth and education at St John Paul Evans said: “Young people aged 10 to 19 represent 11 per cent of the total population of the UK, and 10 to 24-year-olds make up 18 per cent of the population. But not all of these young people get the same start in life, or opportunities.

“Young Responders will engage and empower young people from diverse communities to become active health citizens, learning practical physical and mental health first aid sessions relevant to the challenges they face.”

Laura Chow, head of charities at the People’s Postcode Lottery, said: “It is fantastic to see young people across the UK learning first aid skills through Young Responders. The Recovery Fund was created to help charities develop innovative solutions to the many issues affecting people since the Covid-19 pandemic.

“We look forward to seeing more communities benefitting from more young people being trained in vital life-saving skills.”

Paul Evans, St John director of youth and education: "Many readers will be familiar with St John Ambulance, but surprisingly few are aware of the youth programme work of the health response and first aid charity.

"St John runs five youth programmes for five- to 25-year-olds to support and teach first aid and lifesaving skills, and last year marked the 100th anniversary of St John's support for young people.

"If your son, daughter, grandchild or their best friend was stabbed or attacked in the street – would you know what to do? If their drink was spiked, or they’d had too much to drink, and had collapsed, having the skills to step in during those vital seconds makes all the difference – it saves lives.

"This month, thanks to £1m made possible by players of People’s Postcode Lottery, St John launches Young Responders, a new programme reaching out to secondary school children and young adults up to 25 in targeted areas of the West Midlands.

"Co-created by young people for young people, Young Responders teaches great lifesaving skills in bite size, hands-on easy to understand sessions. Training includes how to treat street violence injuries from assault, stabbing and glassing, to knowing how to handle alcohol and drug abuse, spiking, as well as gaining awareness and resilience training in mental health.

"Delivered initially through schools, the health and first aid charity hopes the Young Responders programme will reach a new audience and is targeting young people at risk of street crime, young carers, cared for young people and those not in education, training or employment. Benefits go beyond great first aid know-how, and include improved confidence and leadership skills plus it’s a great addition to a CV.

"The ambition is for Young Responders to develop strong partnerships with existing street crime and support organisations already working with the target audience in key areas and by the end of 2023 train 15,000 young people in lifesaving first aid.

"Find out more about Young Responders by visiting sja.org.uk/get-involved/young-people/young-responders-home.