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Rest Centres (often set up in church halls or schools) provided temporary accommodation, food and replacement ID cards and ration cards to people who had been bombed out of their homes. Various armband designs relating to services carried out by volunteers and council staff exist. The armband below is a generic REST CENTRE example with the ARP emblem on green twill.  Green ARP Rest Centre Armband  A rest centre aiding a bombed out family
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A rare "W.V.S. R.K." (Women’s Voluntary Services Relief Kitchen) armband and identification card. Issued in the Brighton area the Rest Centre would have had a kitchen set up by WVS volunteers to feed those bombed out of their homes. A viewer of the blog kindly supplied the images.  WVS Relief Kitchen (RK) Armband  WVS Relief Kitchen (RK) ID Card Of all the collectables from the Home Front, some of the most avidly sought out are the armbands (or armlets as they were regularly called) issued. The below 'Rest Centre Registration Officer' armband sold recently on eBay for £310 (plus £2.25 shipping).  Rest Centre Registration Officer Armband On 3 October 1942, Bishop Dr. Bell, Bishop of Chichester, officiates at the communal burial at Horsham Road Cemetery of 27 victims of the bombing of Petworth Boys' School. On September 29, 1942, at approximately 10:25 in the morning, a lone German bomber (thought to be a Junkers 88, possibly from Kampfgeschwader 6 (KG 6 - Bomber Wing 6)) bombed the school in West Sussex. In total, 28 schoolboys and three staff were killed immediately or later died from their injuries. The bomber was aiming for troops at Petworth House but the bombs fell on the school instead. The Petworth Society Magazine has a detailed account of the incident with additional photographs.  Communal Grave for Petworth Boys School Victims Several period photos show members of the Fire Guard Organisation wearing a breast badge consisting of 'FG' letters and a crown in white embroidery. A smaller, similar badge with a circle has also been sewn onto the beret or side cap. To date, I've not come across any official paperwork about the issue of these badges and the assumption is that the uniformed Fire Guard members purchased them privately. The badges are similar in size and design to the standard 'old gold' CD badges.  Fire Guard 'FG' breast badge for battledress  Wartime photo of the Fire Guard 'FG' breast badge |
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