Exclusive

Hospital waits get even longer as NHS trusts slash use of private ambulances to cut costs

8 May 2025, 07:58

Ambulances wait to unload patients
Ambulances wait to unload patients. Picture: Alamy

By Heather Cartwright and Connor Hand

Frontline emergency workers have warned LBC that patients are facing even longer waits for hospital care as a result of NHS trusts cutting the use of private ambulances services in a bid to save money.

Listen to this article

Loading audio...

LBC has learned the majority of England’s ambulance trusts have recently stopped using private ambulance services or cut down their contract hours.

At busy times like Christmas and bank holidays, their services have often been deployed to ease pressures, facilitating non-emergency tasks such as the transfer of in-patients between hospitals.

In a call to Nick Ferrari at Breakfast, emergency worker Brian lamented that he and his colleagues had been simply “discarded”, resulting in the loss of crucial skills in the NHS and increased pressure on paramedics carrying out emergency work.

“What people don’t realise is that a paramedic has a burn time - from qualifying to leaving the service - of eighteen months… they’re simply burnt out from the pressure of it,” Brian told LBC, contending that the loss of the decision to cut Emergency Medical Technicians, who attend frontline calls, will exacerbate these pressures.

NHS: 'Car-park care' is on the rise, expert says

Many trusts told LBC they were scaling on private ambulance services in order to meet budget targets set by NHS England.

One private provider said the problem is being made worse by the hike they are facing in national insurance payments.

Brian’s warnings about the pressure facing frontline workers was backed up by Garrett Emmerson, former head of the London Ambulance Service, who warned trusts are facing unprecedented demand.

“We have seen year on year growth in the number of 999 calls and call outs ambulance crews are making," Mr Emmerson told LBC. "That has put pressure on individual trusts who have to make sure they have enough ambulances on the roads to respond to anything that's thrown at them."

Delays in the delivery of emergency care, which can be caused by a lack of capacity, can have devastating consequences.

Susan, had a stroke just before Christmas at their home in Wiltshire.It took almost two hours for an ambulance to arrive to take her to hospital.
Susan, had a stroke just before Christmas at their home in Wiltshire.It took almost two hours for an ambulance to arrive to take her to hospital. Picture: Client provided

Earlier this year, LBC revealed that an average of 1,000 patients per week have suffered potentially life-threatening harm after being stuck in an ambulance outside A&E departments since Labour’s election victory

Robert Christensen's partner, Susan, had a stroke just before Christmas at their home in Wiltshire.

It took almost two hours for an ambulance to arrive to take her to hospital.

"Susan has lost the use of her left side and her left arm and leg," Robert recalled in an emotional conversation with LBC.

"We have just felt so helpless,” he continued: “All the apologies in the world and admissions of failing won't change what happened to Susan and aren’t going to make her life any better."

Will Labour’s plan for the NHS cost us more than it saves?

South Western Ambulance Trust have apologised and admitted the delay was unacceptable, pointing to extreme winter pressures.

Indeed, the trust is one of those to tell LBC they are “proactively reducing” their use of private ambulance providers, in order to meet targets of cutting agency spending by 30 percent.

In response to our investigation, a Department of Health and Social spokesperson told LBC: "it is for NHS ambulance trusts to determine whether additional capacity from the independent sector is needed to meet the demand they face.

“We know that because of the broken NHS this government inherited, patients are waiting far too long for ambulances. Through our Plan for Change we are fundamentally reforming the health service, improving A&E waiting times and ambulance response times and shifting services from the hospital to the community to ensure patients can access the right treatment closer to home.”

More Latest News

See more More Latest News

THAILAND PATTAYA MARKET THAI FOOD

Cardiovascular disease rates in Southeast Asia soar by 148% in 30 years according to latest figures

File photo dated 03/02/22 of an online energy bill. The energy price cap will fall by 7% from July 1 for a typical household in England, Scotland and Wales, Ofgem has said. Issue date: Friday May 23, 2025.

Energy companies ordered to pay out £70 million in compensation over forced meter fittings

A young caucasian man in pajamas in bed about to take some blue pills from a brown bottle

Urgent warning after two die in London taking ‘blue pills’

Doctor working with medical imaging and technology to provide accurate diagnosis.

New study reveals the childhood cancers which take the longest to diagnose

A Jewish boy has been hospitalised after a ‘racially motivated attack’ in Hampstead, a charity has said.

Jewish boy hospitalised after ‘racially motivated attack’ in Hampstead, north London

Palestinians carry boxes containing food and humanitarian aid packages delivered by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation.

Hamas tells Gazans facing food shortages to stay away from US-linked aid deliveries

The Harvard University logo is displayed on a building at the school, Tuesday, April 15, 2025, in Cambridge, Mass.

Germany offers ‘exile campus’ to Harvard students after foreigner ban

Water St the morning after the tragic events just after the LFC trophy parade when a car was driven into the crowd injuring at least 50 people

Liverpool crash victim ‘pleaded with driver to stop’ before car mowed him down as motorist arrested for attempted murder

One in ten women say they have been spat on while running, a new study reveals.

'Hurtful and traumatising': Rise in men 'spitting' on women runners in disturbing new form of street harassment

Gayanne Potter told LBC she feels "absolutely sick".

Leading voiceover artist ‘violated’ by ScotRail AI announcements using her voice without 'permission'

The popular club's licence has been suspended following allegations that a woman was raped by a security guard in the vicinity of the venue

Heaven security guard accused of raping teenager was 'not permitted to work in UK' and 'used false ID to get job'

RFK Jr said that Covid-19 shots would be removed from the recommendations for certain groups.

Robert F Kennedy Jr drops Covid vaccines for healthy children and pregnant women - slamming lack of 'clinical data'

Rebecca Turner, 36, was found dead in Bangkok with her partner, Sam Melnick, in 2024.

Mother of British woman found dead in Bangkok hotel after 'unwitting hit of drugs' alleges Thai police ‘cover-up’

Arabella Stanton, Dominic McLaughlin and Alastair Stout will star as Hermione, Harry and Ron in the new Harry Potter TV series.

Harry Potter and the new cast revealed: First pic of child stars ahead of TV series

Liverpool's captain Virgil van Dijk (posing with former footballer Alan Hansen and the Premier League trophy) sent a message of support to victims of the crash

Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk ‘praying for speedy recovery’ for those hurt in parade crash

(Clockwise from top left) Indigo Rumbelow, Leanorah Ward, Daniel Knorr and Margaret Reid

Four Just Stop Oil activists jailed over plot to disrupt Manchester Airport