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In 1967, Mr Wee Hock Kee, the then Corps Superintendent, and several other officers, proposed the setting up of St. John Ambulance Brigade in the school to the late principal, Mr Chen Jen Hao. The school agreed and in January 1968, recruitment began successfully, creating a division with a strength of 60 nursing and 60 ambulance members. The first batch of teachers-in-charge was Mr Chin Kian See, Mr Lin Li Chai, Mdm Tan Lee Na, Mrs Yeo Yong Siang, Mdm Yan Su Qing, Mdm Goh Mei Mei and Mr Hia Joo Tiah.

The newly formed division requested for help from Tion Bahru “B” Division in First Corps to kick-start the training programmes. The members of the Tiong Bahru “B” Division were working adult volunteers, who were only available on Sundays. Henceforthe, trainings in the first year were conducted on Sundays. Several key personnel amongst the Tiong Bahru “B” volunteers are Mr Dai Ai Ming, Mr Lu Pei Fen, and Mr Xie Ke Guang. After a year under the capable hands of the volunteers, Dunman High Division became self-sufficient and training could then be held on Saturdays. Medium of instruction under the volunteers used to be Mandarin, but when Dunman High became a SAP school, bilingualism was encouraged and the language of choice was slowly changed to English.

In the past 40 years, the Corps has been able to develop and flourish because of dedicated and responsible teachers and seniors. As early as in the 1970s, the alumni would return to assist in the training of cadets and running of activities.

However, the road was not always smooth sailing. In the starting days, the Division’s main difficulty was in recruitment, as most Secondary One students then had not heard of SJAB, and those who did had no inkling of what SJAB was about. After discussions, the school decided to assist all uniform groups by ensuring that all students had to make a few choices in selecting CCA and of which, one of them has to be a Uniformed Group. Thereafter, the school would help allocate students into the various Uniformed Groups.

Even though many who ended up in SJAB may not have chosen it as their first choice, if any at all, most stayed and to enjoy the memorable times with the Division, benefiting themselves from the numerous trainings and opportunities given.

In 1987, St. John Ambulance Brigade went through a restructure and all the units were divided into 10 Areas in 4 Districts. Dunman High Division was part of District D Area 8, which is subsequent know as Zone8. The unit is subsequently named as Dunman High School Corps after the abolishment of the District Management System.

The Corps faces more challenges than before. Nowadays, it is not in students’ agenda to join Uniformed Groups, and even among those who do, few pick SJAB as their first choice. Furthermore, SJAB faces competition from the newly established NCDCC, which teaches cadets civil defence skills, on top of first aid skills. As a result, many more activities and enrichment programmes are being held to encourage more students to join SJAB.

In 2005, the five day work week system was introduced and the Corps faced the problem of seniors being unable to return to the Corps during weekdays, as many were working or studying. Discussions with the school yielded a solution, where trainings were conducted on 2 Fridays and 2 Saturdays a month, ensuring that officers and senior NCOs were able to return to participate in trainings. In the same year, the Integrated Programme was launched in DHS. As members can now complete their A Level Curriculum in DHS, many of them step up to take up the challenge to stay on in SJAB to follow up as seniors.

In the recent years, our activities have seen a great change in direction. Apart from routine trainings, the Corps has been actively involved in Community Involvement Programmes, such as visits to old folks’ homes and teaching of basic first aid skills to children. Many enrichment courses have also been introduced, such as kayaking, overnight cycling and archery. As a special treat, overseas trips are also organised whenever the chances arise.