British Red Cross: we're here for humanity
Disaster can strike any time, anywhere. With millions of volunteers across 192 countries, the Red Cross can reach people with the help they need to get through a crisis
READ MORE![Joe Carstairs 1084 x 610](/-/media/feature/projectred/16x9/joe-carstairs-1084-x-610.jpg?sc_lang=en&h=610&w=1084&la=en&hash=6997CBE62333D48601B5F63C78F73986)
LGBTQ+ history month: Joe Carstairs - ambulance driver and fastest woman on water
By British Red Cross
Red Cross ambulance driver Joe Carstairs lived life fearlessly, shunning societal norms while always helping others.
![A close-up image of a section of the original Changi quilt](/-/media/feature/projectred/16x9/other/changi-quilt-hero.jpg?sc_lang=en&h=610&w=1084&la=en&hash=7C1D5C4C152F6DFFC69BC0CBEDA013E8)
The Changi quilt: secrets and survival
By British Red Cross
Created by a group of defiant women prisoners during the Second World War, the Changi quilt is packed with secret messages and hidden meanings
Then and now: meet some of our most inspiring volunteers
![Portrait of Florence Nightingale.](/-/media/feature/projectred/16x9/florence-nightingale_promo-card.jpg?sc_lang=en&h=610&w=1084&la=en&hash=7110645063B0AA6AC6600500337B7362)
The legacy of Florence Nightingale, the first professional nurse
Her influence is still felt more than a century after her death
![Two police officers and two other men lift cardboard boxes into the back of a van at the time of the mining disaster in Aberfan.](/-/media/feature/projectred/16x9/other/history-unloading-supplies-in-aberfan.jpg?sc_lang=en&h=402&w=716&la=en&hash=EE4F11F31548A2447A807BCEE951DF55)
Memories of a Red Cross volunteer at Aberfan
John Cole was one of hundreds of British Red Cross volunteers who helped the local community in Aberfan. Now, his daughter Anna shares his story.
![A photograph of Dr John Alcindor.](/-/media/feature/projectred/16x9/john-alcindor.jpg?sc_lang=en&h=610&w=1084&la=en&hash=A7CED28944F040A362452A8657735131)
The famous Black doctor of Paddington
A doctor who overcame prejudice to help others during the First World War finally won recognition a hundred years later.
![Laszlo inside a hospital room](/-/media/feature/projectred/16x9/aaa-stories-and-other/laszlo.jpg?sc_lang=en&h=900&w=1600&la=en&hash=18AF09B70332C0CA2EA04231EEE19630)
Caring for others through coronavirus: one nurse's story
Long-standing Red Cross volunteer and NHS community nurse, Laszlo, shares his story
![Stephen and other children from Christchurch Primary School practise first aid in school.](/-/media/feature/projectred/16x9/other/stories-first-aid-club-stephen.jpg?sc_lang=en&h=610&w=1084&la=en&hash=1B003BA03B7DEE97340D9D654D812109)
We campaigned to get first aid on the curriculum - now children are saving lives
By British Red Cross
When Stephen saw a woman who had collapsed in the street, he knew what to do because he had learned first aid at school with the help of the Red Cross.
150 years of the power of kindness
![Poster designed for the recruitment of Voluntary Aid Detachments, or VADs, during the First World War.](/-/media/feature/projectred/16x9/vad-poster-promo-card.jpg?sc_lang=en&h=610&w=1084&la=en&hash=8514E12D516C729FE969FAAE3BFD89DA)
Spanish flu: what the Red Cross did in a global pandemic
This is how we helped in the 1918 health crisis
![The Royal Mint 150th anniversary coin designed to honour 150 years of kindness through the British Red Cross.](/-/media/feature/projectred/16x9/aaa-stories-and-other/british-red-cross-commemorative-coin-150-years.jpg?sc_lang=en&h=610&w=1080&la=en&hash=EFE07F2AEACD271CCCE8E8C460B31C95)
Celebrating our 150th on a Royal Mint coin
A look at the inspiration and history behind the design
![A group of British Red Cross volunteers smile for the camera.](/-/media/feature/projectred/16x9/brc-150-years.jpg?sc_lang=en&h=610&w=1084&la=en&hash=471EBB105C8AEFEB8C101F597590836C)
The beginnings of the British Red Cross
Our museum and archives curator explains how it all began
![Princess Diana holds flowers and smiles at a group of adults and disabled children at a British Red Cross camp.](/-/media/feature/projectred/16x9/other/stories-princess-diana-red-cross-camp.jpg?sc_lang=en&h=610&w=1084&la=en&hash=0D254C8EBD81BA22C7D8254E50DF9A0D)
From beans on toast to landmines, memories of Princess Diana and the Red Cross
We look back at the life of a dedicated humanitarian
![A British Red Cross nurse from the first world war holds a letter and looks thoughtful in a garden.](/-/media/feature/projectred/16x9/first-world-war-nurse-and-letter.jpg?sc_lang=en&h=610&w=1084&la=en&hash=1C35F63D1A54078AA3DCAFA150146A3C)
Letters from a First World War nurse
These letters from our archive show the challenges of nursing during difficult times, as well as some of the lighter moments.
Our Disaster Fund
When disaster strikes, the first few hours are critical. Our Disaster Fund helps us to respond quickly and give people urgent help in the UK and overseas.
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