Tuesday 12 March 2024: Musician and broadcaster Myleene Klass has joined forces with St John Ambulance, England’s leading first aid and healthcare charity, as its first Celebrity Ambassador. 

Myleene, who has worked with St John since the launch of its ‘Ask Me’ brand campaign in 2021, will be collaborating with the charity on impactful, public-facing campaigns to raise awareness of the vital importance of community first aid – and the urgent need for more people to learn lifesaving skills. 

Myleene, whose association with St John Ambulance started several years ago when she and her children were first aid trained by the charity, said: “First aid is a hugely important life skill that cannot be underestimated. On separate occasions both my daughters have choked. It’s really terrifying, it happens so quickly, and I only knew what to do because I’ve done a first aid course. I am delighted to continue my association with St John Ambulance and look forward to working with them on raising awareness of the vital importance of all of us knowing lifesaving first aid.” 

First Aid is even covered in Myleene’s book, They Don’t Teach This At School, which is now a popular podcast. 

As part of its community first aid work, St John Ambulance runs five core youth programmes for young people aged 5-25 years-old, as well as volunteering opportunities for people of all ages. The partnership with Myleene will also allow the charity to further develop activity with her two daughters Ava, 16, and Hero, 12, to amplify the work the charity does to educate and engage young people through these vital youth programmes.

One of these youth programmes is Young Responders, which teaches young people street first aid, such as how to deal with knife wounds, drug or drink intoxication, and training around mental health awareness. In 2023, Myleene and Ava joined students at a school in Brixton to take part in a Young Responders session focussed on drink spiking; an issue very personal for Myleene, as she was spiked at the height of her Hear’Say fame, aged 20.

Myleene said at the time: “As a parent and mother of a teenager, it’s our responsibility to arm them with facts. We want them to go out and have fun at parties and festivals – but there has to be a balance. You want them to be safe and ultimately, if they or their friends get themselves into trouble, you want your child to know what to do.”

Ava said: “If someone is in danger at a social event, often it may not be taken seriously because people don’t understand the actual danger and things can go wrong, very fast. It felt helpful to learn what to do in that situation and to know I can go to St John Ambulance for help, completely judgement free – that can be a main obstacle that gets in the way for my age group getting help.” 

St John Ambulance Chief Experience Officer, Vicki Sellick, said: “We are grateful for the ongoing support that Myleene has given us and for lending her voice to our cause. Her dedication to raising awareness of community first aid has brought attention to our work, and has no doubt contributed to saving lives. 

"The authentic connection Myleene has with St John Ambulance, and through talking about her family’s own life or death emergencies, has helped the public understand the difference first aid can make. We are delighted to welcome Myleene officially as a St John Ambulance ambassador and look forward to continuing our relationship with her and her family.” 

To learn more about Myleene’s role with St John or to donate to the charity so they can continue its life saving work, visit: Myleene | St John Ambulance (sja.org.uk).