A 70th birthday doesn't come around every day, or even every year. So we've returned to our archives this week to dig out some more photographs celebrating 70 years of the NHS. It's an institution which, for all its faults and problems, is very definitely worth celebrating...

Our oldest photograph today dates back to 15 years before the NHS. It shows the women's gynaecology ward at York County Hospital in 1933. And all very spick and span it is, too; a model of cleanliness and efficiency. But could you imagine having to spend much time as a patient there?

The rest of our photographs this week are all about people - the staff, the volunteers, the fundraisers and of course the patients, who between them are what the NHS is all about.

There's a lovely photograph of four mums who all gave birth at Fulford Maternity Hospital on the day, in 1981, that Prince Charles married Lady Diana. And not a Charles or Diana among their offspring...

Elsewhere, there are photographs of 17-year-old Paula Tanner, who was so impressed by the care she received on Ward G3 at York District Hospital in 1982 that she bought a colour TV for the ward; children playing with a train set donated by members of the York Round Table in 1977; and two cheerful photographs from 1971 of members of the York Hospital Service Reserve - trained volunteers who provided support for over-worked nurses.

Perhaps the happiest photo of all, however, is of the evening kitchen staff at York District Hospital taking part in a sponsored bed push in 1986 to raise money for the special care baby unit. It's a nice reminder that the NHS isn't only about doctors and nurses: it couldn't continue without the countless other domestic and support staff - porters, cleaners, cooks and so many more - who keep it running...

Stephen Lewis