Five seconds from now, someone you love could need first aid. Would you know what to do? Everyone can learn the practical skills needed to save a life. In September, you get the chance to learn how, for free. Simply come along to one of our in-person demos in your area, explore our online guides, or request a first aid guide by post.
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Save a Life September
Anyone can learn to save a life. This month, it’s your turn.
Every day, ordinary people find themselves in situations they never would have expected: A family member starts choking at breakfast, your gym buddy collapses with chest pains, you find the victim of a knife crime on your walk home.
In fact 25% of people in Britain* say they have witnessed or personally experienced an incident of choking, cardiac arrest, or severe bleeding.
When emergency strikes like this, having someone close by with even basic first aid knowledge makes a huge difference to a person’s odds of survival. When you gain the knowledge and confidence to act in an emergency, you make everyone around you safer.
This month, we are coming to your area to teach you three first aid skills which could save thousands of lives. Our trained volunteers will show you how to:
Respond to choking
Perform CPR if someone is in cardiac arrest
Treat severe bleeding
There’s no need to book, no experience needed, we don’t mind if you’re nervous, simply find your nearest demo and come along.
Learning these skills is quick, logical, and could one day make all the difference to someone you love.
Find your closest demo
Pop in during any of the times listed to learn or refresh your life-saving skills. Those of all ages are welcome.
Three Lessons to Save a Life
Can’t make it to a demonstration? Our online videos and guidance below will talk you through the same, life-saving skills.
To spread the impact of Save a Life September even further, share them with a friend of colleague. More first aiders in your community means more lives saved.
Request a free first aid guide
You can also request a paper copy of our free first aid guide for your home or workplace. This covers the three Save a Life September lessons, as well the recovery position and advice on how to respond to a heart attack.
How many lives could we save?
We know that bleeding, choking, and cardiac arrests lead to tens of thousands of deaths in the UK every year. Far more lead to hospitalisations or lifelong complications.
In Britain, some of these emergencies are also little understood. One in three people*, don’t recognise that choking can become life-threatening in minutes without first aid. Only 42%* know how to save the life of someone choking by giving back blows and abdominal thrusts.
We also know the power of early intervention.
Someone with first aid knowledge can make an immediate difference when someone is choking or bleeding severely. Early CPR and defibrillation can more than double someone’s chance of survival when they go into cardiac arrest.
We recently found that a quarter of people* reported they would panic if they came across a serious health emergency, but when you’re sure of the steps to follow, you are more likely to stay calm and act. At St John Ambulance, we see every day how that action can turn a chaotic, life-threatening moment into a controlled one.
What has Save a Life September achieved so far?
Over September 2025, 15,000 people learned first aid at our free demonstrations and 250,000 viewed the guidance on our website. That means tens of thousands more people in our communities trained to respond to life-threatening situations.
This year, we’re aiming even bigger. With your help, we want to train 500,000 people how to treat choking, cardiac arrest, and severe bleeding.
You can help further by inviting friends and family along with you to our demonstrations, sharing our online advice, and encouraging your work team to get trained up in essential first aid.
If you aren’t able to join us this month, you can learn first aid with us at any time of the year. Read our online advice, book a free awareness session, or take a course with us.
How first aid can save lives
*The research commissioned by St John Ambulance was conducted by Censuswide, among a sample of 2001 nationally representative respondents. The data was collected between 13.07.2026 - 15.07.2026.