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Westwood Works 1903-2003

First Aid & St John Ambulance

Proficiency in First Aid techniques was considered vital with the risks inherent in an engineering environment. The Company actively encouraged this with regular practice nights and participation in individual, inter-departmental, inter-works and national competitions. The long term nature and degree of involvement in this activity can be judged by the 1937 photograph of the Westwood Works Ambulance Section.

1930: Westwood Works Ambulance Section	1937: Westwood Works Ambulance Section	1940: The Ambulance Section	1945: St John Ambulance Brigade - Westwood Works Division	1955: Medical Comforts Section	1956: John Rouse wins the Individual First Aid competition	1964: Stores Team win A.I. Baker Shield
1965: Westwood Works First Aid Team win H. Crowther and J.A.W. Deboo Trophies	1965: Winners of First Aid competition	1966: Baker Perkins Ambulance Team win Peterborough Finals	1966: Winners of  inter-departmental Ambulance competition	1966: Runners up in inter-departmental Ambulance competition	1967: First-aiders' Practice Night	1969: Westwood Works Ambulance Section
1974: The St John Ambulance Section reforms	1974: Westwood Works Team come second in inter-works competition	1975: Jim Deboo admitted to the Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of St John of Jerusalem	1975: First-aider Fred Benson retires	1976: Westwood Works St John Ambulance team achieve Grand Slam at the St. John County Championships	1981: Practising First Aid	1981: Certificate Presentation
1982: Jim Deboo presents WWMS cheque to Medical Comforts	Ambulance Section - early 1950s?

John Rouse remembers serving as a first aider in the surgery on Sunday mornings and being in dread of any "body" entering the door.

David James carried out some duties in the surgery and remembers removing steel splinters from eyes and on one occasion coping, until the ambulance arrived, with a fellow who had been struck badly on the leg by flying cast iron from the compound in the yard where they used to break up scrap castings. He used to drive one of the St Johns Brigade ambulances which was an old Bedford with a big silver bell instead of today's sirens. "We attended many duties such as motor cycle scrambles at Wansford, football at the "Posh" ground, point to point horse racing and of course the cinema and pantomimes."

	1935: Jubilee Shield presented by John William Fowler to Westwood Works Ambulance Section
	H. Crowther Shield - Interworks Ambulance Competition.

A Works Ambulance?

David James describes above his experience of driving a St. John Ambulance – it is understood that this did not belong to the Westwood Brigade. The first reference we have found to a Westwood Works Ambulance is in an Internal Memo from March 1939. Whether the perceived need for such a vehicle was precipitated by fears of a coming war is not known but the Secretary of the Westwood Works (Male Employees) Benevolent Fund wrote to Josh Booth (Director and Works Manager):

"At a meeting of the above committee, the question of a Works Ambulance came before them for consideration. On various occasions employees of Westwood Works have required the use of an ambulance and although the fullest enquiries have been made, our efforts have met with no success. After a lengthy discussion, I was instructed to write and request you to meet a small committee to discuss assistance towards the purchasing and maintenance of a Works Ambulance".

At the end of March 1939 Mr Newson received a reply:

"Referring to your letter of the 8th instant, I have made enquiries and find that the Ambulance belonging to the St. John Ambulance Corps at Oundle can be had by us on giving reasonable notice so that they can obtain a driver.

They hope to buy a new Ambulance next year if Funds permit, and I would suggest it might be a nice gesture if you made them a grant from your Funds on account of the promise to put their Ambulance at our disposal".

It is most unlikely that the vehicle referred to in the above memos is the same one described by David James but we have been unable to find a photograph of either. If anyone has further information on the existence of any Works Ambulance we would be pleased to hear from you.

Members of the Ambulance Section

There were around as many as 60 members of the Westwood Works Ambulance Section at various periods between the wars and after 1940. Known members from between 1925 to 1936; 1937 to 1939 and from 1940 onwards are listed below:

The Westwood Junction Rail Crash of 1955

One of the most exciting tasks for the First Aid volunteers was to attend the rail crash that occurred just outside the Works close to Westwood Bridge. Details of this can be found in Outside Views.