Originally Posted by
Nugget90
To return to the thread, it occurs to me that having the same round medal but slightly different ribbons might answer the question as to how to award a medal to UK service personnel involved in operations where some are in theatre and others are outside. Those risking their lives and encountering rigour could have their medal suspended by an appropriate ribbon, whilst those engaged in qualifying support activities could have the same medal but with a ribbon in which the colours would be arranged differently. This might be an alternative solution to having a rosette aka the South Atlantic Medal (Falklands).
To add to this subject, all 4 Operational Service Medals (Afghan, Congo, Sierra Leone and Shader) have the same medal design. The ribbons only differ on the outer colour and this is chosen based on the area of operations (the inner three bands represent the theee armed services). Clasps are added if required but this varies with each medal. It's reasonable sensible - you only ever see the queen's head anyway and it saves on a new contract every time...