Ambulance response times worst on record – and A&E waits hit new high

Published

2 years ago

January 12, 2023

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Average ambulance response times in England last month were the longest on record – as more than half of people at major A&Es had to wait longer than four hours for the first time since records began in 2011.

New figures show the average response time in December for ambulances in England dealing with the most urgent incidents – defined as calls from people with life-threatening illnesses or injuries – was 10 minutes and 57 seconds.

This is the longest on record and compares with the target standard response time for urgent incidents of seven minutes.

The average wait times for Category 2 ambulance calls – emergencies such as heart attacks and strokes – was over an hour and a half for the first time (1hr 32m54s). The target for these calls is 18 minutes.

Key figures at a glance:

Average December response time for ambulances dealing with most urgent incidents, defined as calls from people with life-threatening illnesses or injuries, was 10 mins 57 secs. The target is seven minutes
Average wait times for Category 2 ambulance calls – emergencies such as heart attacks and strokes – was 1hr 33mins. The target is 18 minutes
50.4% of patients attending major A&E departments not seen within the target time of four hours – the first time on record the figure has been more than half
NHS England waiting lists for routine procedures such as cataracts operations falls from 7.21m to 7.19m – although this is still the second highest figure on record
The proportion of cancer patients in England who saw a specialist within two weeks of an urgent GP referral grows from 77.8% in October to 78.8% in November

The latest NHS England figures also showed a total of 50.4% of patients attending major A&E departments were not seen within the target time of four hours.

That is 4.9% worse than November and 19% worse than the equivalent month pre-pandemic, in December 2019.

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More than a third (35%) of people attending all A&Es – including specialist centres and minor injuries units – waited longer than four hours. That is also the worst level on record and the only time that figure has been higher than a third.

It is 3.9% worse than November and 14.8% worse than December 2019.

Meanwhile, NHS England waiting lists for routine procedures such as cataracts operations fell for the first time since May 2020 – but the number of people waiting over a year for treatment is still 220 times more than before the pandemic.

A total of 7.19m are waiting for NHS treatment – down from 7.21m.

The peak of 7.21m recorded in October was a rise of 3.3m on 3.95m in May 2020 – and followed 29 months of consecutive growth for the waiting list.

However, 7.19m is still the second highest number there has ever been on the waiting list at the end of a month since records began in 2007.

The number of people waiting more than two years fell from 1,907 to 1,423, the number waiting 18 months or more dropped from 50,124 to 48,961 and the number waiting more than a year fell from 410,983 to 406,575.

The figures were revealed a day after up to 25,000 ambulance workers walked out on strike in a dispute with the government over pay.

More strikes are scheduled, with nurses scheduled to walk out next Wednesday and Thursday, and another ambulance strike the week after, on 23 January.

The new NHS England figures showed a record 264,391 urgent cancer referrals were made by GPs in England in November, the highest number in records going back to 2009.

The proportion of cancer patients in England who saw a specialist within two weeks of being referred urgently by their GP grew from 77.8% in October to 78.8% in November – but was still below the 93% target.

Some 61% of the record 16,296 cancer patients who had their first treatment in November after an urgent referral by their GP had waited less than two months – an increase from 60.3% the previous month but below the 85% target.

And a record average of 14,069 hospital beds per day last week in England were occupied by people ready to be discharged – up from 13,134 the previous week and 11,795 at this point last year.

UK

Girl, 10, and father, who died in caravan park fire in Lincolnshire named

Published

4 hours ago

April 6, 2025

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Girl, 10, and father, who died in caravan park fire in Lincolnshire named

Two people who died following a fire at a caravan site near Skegness have been named by police.

Lincolnshire Police said 48-year-old Lee Baker and his 10-year-old daughter Esme Baker, both from the Nottingham area, were killed in the blaze.

However, formal identification is still yet to take place and “could take some time”, the force said.

Emergency services were alerted to a fire at Golden Beach Holiday Park, in the village of Ingoldmells, at 3.53am on Saturday.

In a statement issued through police, a member of the Baker family said: “Lee and Esme were excited to be spending the first weekend of the holidays together.

“We are all utterly devastated at what’s happened.

“This loss is incomprehensible at the moment, and we ask for people to give us space to process this utterly heartbreaking loss.”

A GoFundMe page set up for the victims’ family described the father and daughter as “two peas in a pod” who were “both happy-go-lucky people who loved life”. It has so far raised more than £3,000.

The police force, together with Lincolnshire Fire & Rescue, are continuing to investigate the cause of the blaze.

Detective Inspector Lee Nixon said: “We believe we might be close to arriving at a working hypothesis.

“We are working hard to validate the facts available to us to be able to provide answers for the family and loved ones of those who were very tragically taken by this fire.

“Yet the evident intensity of the fire has made this task incredibly challenging.”

Dan Moss, from Lincolnshire Fire & Rescue, said: “Our thoughts and deepest condolences are with the family at this time.

“Our Fire Investigation Team is working with colleagues from Lincolnshire Police, and a full investigation into the cause of the fire is ongoing.

“Once investigations are complete, local fire crews and our community fire safety team will be on hand to talk to people in the area and address any fire safety concerns they may have, at what will be an upsetting time.”

UK

Man arrested over wildfire that triggered ‘major incident’ in Northern Ireland

Published

5 hours ago

April 6, 2025

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Man arrested over wildfire that triggered 'major incident' in Northern Ireland

A man has been arrested by police investigating a “significant” wildfire that triggered a major incident in Northern Ireland.

More than 100 firefighters and 15 fire appliances were deployed on Saturday to Sandbank Road, Hilltown, to tackle the blaze which is believed to have been caused deliberately, fire chiefs said.

Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service (NIFRS) said the fire had a front of approximately two miles “including a large area of forestry close to property”.

It was extinguished at 2.53am on Sunday and the major incident status lifted, the NIFRS said.

“The cause of this fire is believed to have been deliberate,” chief fire and rescue officer Aidan Jennings said.

The Police Service of Northern Ireland said on Sunday that a 25-year-old man had been arrested “on suspicion of arson being reckless as to whether life would be endangered, and non-related driving offences”.

“He remains in custody at this time as enquiries continue into the circumstances surrounding the fire,” the force added.

Various fires erupted across England this week amid uncharacteristically warm and dry conditions for the time of year.

On Saturday, helicopters were deployed to tackle Scotland’s fourth wildfire this week, with police saying a blaze “which started in the Newton Stewart area has spread northwards and is expected to reach the Loch Doon area of East Ayrshire around 12am on Sunday”.

Police Scotland added: “As a precautionary measure members of the public are asked to avoid the Loch Doon area and anyone who may be camping in the area is advised to leave.”

Elsewhere in England, Devon and Cornwall Police said they were assisting the fire service with temporary road closures on the A30 in the Bolventor area as they tackle “a number of fires” on moorland.

In Dorset, Moors Valley Country Park was forced to close after multiple wildfires broke out there on Wednesday.

Separate incidents were then reported at Upton Heath in Poole on Wednesday, and nearby Canford Heath in the early hours of Thursday.

Friday was officially the warmest day of the year so far – with temperatures in the south of England reaching 23C (73.4F) – the highest since 21 September last year, according to the Met Office.

The weather conditions triggered a “severe” wildfire rating for parts of the UK on Tuesday.

UK

Man shot dead in Stanley, County Durham

Published

5 hours ago

April 6, 2025

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Police are investigating after a man was shot dead in County Durham.

Officers were called to an address in Elm Street, Stanley, at about 5.20pm on Saturday after reports of a “disturbance”, Durham Constabulary said.

A man in his 50s was found to have been shot and despite the efforts of paramedics he was pronounced dead at the scene.

His family have been told and are being supported by specially trained officers.

Specialist crime scene investigators are at the scene, and officers are carrying out house-to-house enquiries.

A cordon is in place and is expected to stay there for some time.

Detective Superintendent Neil Fuller said: “This is a truly shocking incident in which a man has been shot and has sadly died.”

He added: “Residents may see an increased police presence in the area. I would like to thank them for their support while we carry out this investigation.

“Our thoughts are with the man’s family at this time.”

Durham Constabulary has urged anyone who witnessed the incident or has dashcam footage or CCTV to contact the force.