Since 1965, the Florence Nightingale Commemoration Service has been held each year at Westminster Abbey. It is a deeply significant moment in the Florence Nightingale Foundation calendar and a cherished occasion for nursing and midwifery communities around the world.
It is a time when nurses and midwives from across the UK and overseas, come together in gratitude, reflection, and celebration of those who continue to carry forward Florence Nightingale’s extraordinary legacy. This year’s Service will again take place in Westminster Abbey on 12 May.
Florence Nightingale Commemoration Service 2026 Sponsor
The Lamp: A Symbol of Care and Continuity
At the heart of the service is the Lamp, a powerful symbol forever linked with Florence Nightingale, known as “The Lady with the Lamp” for her nightly rounds tending to wounded soldiers during the Crimean War.
The Lamp used in the service today was purchased in memory of Mrs Kathleen Dampier-Bennett, who served on the Foundation’s committee from 1951 to 1968. Inscribed in her honour, it was dedicated by the Dean of Westminster on 12 May 1970, the 150th anniversary of Nightingale’s birth, and has been carried at every service since.
The Service
An FNF scholar alumni leads the procession, carrying the Lamp with two escorts as it moves through the Abbey. Following behind are student nurses, representing the passing of knowledge, values, and professional commitment to future generations. The names of this year’s Lamp Carrier and Lamp Escorts will be shared soon.
The Nurses’ Roll of Honour is also processed, carried and escorted by the Military Matrons in Chief. Compiled by the British Commonwealth Nurses War Memorial Fund, it commemorates Commonwealth nurses who lost their lives during the Second World War. Between services, it rests in the Florence Nightingale and Nurses Chapel within the Abbey.
In recent years, the service has expanded its remembrance:
- 2022: A new Roll of Honour was introduced to commemorate nurses, midwives, nursing associates and healthcare support workers who died during the COVID-19 pandemic.
- 2025: A third Roll of Honour was added, remembering the 162 nurses who lost their lives during the First World War between 1914 and 1918.
Who can attend?
Each year we send invitations to over 1500 invited guests from the nursing and midwifery community. Invitations will be sent by email on Tuesday 24 February.
In addition, each year we release a limited number of public tickets, allocated on a first come first served basis: these will be available in early March and then again in late March.
Find out more
If you would like to be the first to hear about the public tickets, please sign up to receive our email newsletter, where will share the link in March. Signing up to the newsletter is also a really good way to find out more about FNF, our programmes, webinars, events and much more. You can sign up to receive our newsletter here.
We have created a set of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) which we hope will be helpful. Click here to be directed to the FAQ page.
Pictures by: The Dean and Chapter of Westminster / Picture Partnership
Florence Nightingale Commemoration Service 2025
