How St John Ambulance helps young people to build confidence and careers

KINDNESS, Chloe Ann Manley says, changed her life – kindness offered by St John Ambulance.

As well as providing physical first aid, the charity’s volunteers help with mental health too.

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“Without this green St John uniform, I don’t know who I’d be,” says Chloe Ann, 18, from Shrewsbury in Shropshire.

“I have dyslexia but it wasn’t diagnosed until recently, so I struggled at school, always feeling one step behind without understanding why. Lacking confidence, I found it difficult to make friends and I became isolated.”

When Chloe Ann was 12, a teacher suggested she join as a Cadet.

The charity runs six youth programmes, including Badgers, for ages five to ten, and the Cadet programme, which is celebrating its 100th year, for ages 11 to 17.

“I was nervous walking into my first meeting,” says Chloe Ann.

“Everyone was so welcoming but as we sat in a circle introducing ourselves, I felt shy. ‘What’s the point in giving your name?’ my low self-esteem nagged. ‘They won’t want you to stay.’”

But the volunteer Youth Leaders encouraged Chloe Ann, and at weekly meetings she worked towards four Cadet awards, completing courses in social action, personal development and mental health and wellbeing.

She also studied first aid, with the goal of volunteering in St John treatment centres at events.

Still, she held off asking her mum to buy the charity’s green uniform. It would be a waste of money when she flunked the training, she thought.

“Finally, after a year and a half of the Youth Leaders telling me I was good enough, I believed it,” Chloe Ann says. “St John is a safe community with a diverse culture – and I learnt to accept and like myself.”

When she was just 13, Chloe Ann assisted adult volunteers with first aid at Shrewsbury Flower Show.

Since then she’s volunteered at Birmingham Pride, reggae festivals and Aston Villa football club.

“I put on the uniform, a switch flips and I feel capable and calm,” she says.

“At an event, anything can happen – there are people who have fallen over and broken an ankle or are suffering from dehydration. Some want to sit down and have a chat. We don’t simply give out plasters and send people on their way – we ask how they're feeling. It’s holistic care.”

It was that holistic care that changed Chloe Ann’s life.

Youth Leaders arrived early for meetings to help her study for her GCSEs – indeed, it was a St John leader who first realised she was dyslexic.

On weekend courses she made friends from across the country.

Feeling nurtured and respected as part of the St John family, she blossomed.

Now, while studying health and social care at college, she’s applying for university.

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“In 2019, a leader tapped a poster for Cadet of the Year and pointed at me,” Chloe Ann says.

“Really?’ I thought. But I was invited to a day at St John’s Staffordshire HQ, where we were tested on first aid, presentation and communication skills. At the end, my name was announced – I was Cadet of the Year 2020-2021 for Staffordshire, Shropshire and Wolverhampton.”

When lockdown hit, Chloe Ann was busy online, connecting with other Cadets regionally, nationally and – as St John has branches in, for example, Singapore and New Zealand – globally.

She also studied leadership online, with the aim of becoming a volunteer Youth Leader herself. It’s a role she’s perfectly suited to.

“There are so many teenagers struggling with their mental health,” she says.

“I know what it’s like to hide in the art room at school. But, through the support and acceptance at St John Ambulance, young people can turn the page.”

In January, Chloe Ann was selected as an International Youth Ambassador – one of only two in England – for the charity.

“When I got the phone call telling me to join the International Youth Advisory Network online meeting that weekend, I spent 30 minutes in shock,” Chloe Ann says.

“Then I rang my best friend, who I met through St John, and we screamed with excitement. It’s a privilege to be a voice for young people.”

Chloe Ann’s story shows how St John Ambulance offers much more than just first aid.

The charity is currently running a campaign called #AskMe to highlight all its services, especially those aimed at young people.

The title of the campaign is apt, Chloe Ann says – St John volunteers are always there to answer questions.

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“Wherever you go, if you see someone wearing a St John badge, they’ll have time to talk to you,” says Chloe Ann.

“St John Ambulance saves lives with first aid but gives vital life support in so many other ways too.”