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Smith and Nephew manufactured a number of first aid pouches, bags and satchels for ARP use. Below is the slightly larger satchel with contents and booklets on bandaging and first aid.
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The stackable ARP stretchers were a ubiquitous item of equipment for the ARP / Civil Defence services. There are plenty of period photos showing them being used in training and at bomb incidents. They appear stacked on top of cars and also inside stores. The design was good enough for the stretchers to continue in use until the 1980s. A number of the stretchers were also used as fences. The colour appears to be a light green – something akin to Verdigris Green BS 280. The excellent original colour film Solihull in Wartime has a good shot of the stretcher (from about the 1 min 48 second mark). There appear to have been a few makers of these stretchers but one particular maker was VONO. A reproduction of the maker’s label shown below.
Not often seen in period photos are leather knee protectors that were issued to Civil Defence personnel, usually rescue but also first aiders. Worn strapped just below the knee, they protected the wearer when kneeling in rubble on rescue duties. I came across this pair, in black leather, made by Blackman in 1944 - given the crow's foot marking I assume they may also have been issued to the army.  WW2 Civil Defence knee pads
 Natural tan leather knee protector worn during Civil Defence exercise (bottom left) These images were sent in of a hand-cracked air raid siren made by Leach. I believe these were the type issued pre-war. A very similar one appears on a pre-war exercise photo (see bottom of this page). Although Carter sirens are often mentioned as being made during the war, little evidence currently backs this up.
 Leach War Department Hand-Cranked Air Raid Siren War Department Plate A pair of these ARP Fire Fighter Goggles sold on eBay (June 2021) for £95 plus £4 shipping). They are quite scarce and prices for CD, ARP and Home Front items continue to climb to new heights.
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