Locked in the back of an ambulance and sexually assaulted: Female paramedics reveal ‘toxic culture’ of harassment
Warning – contains graphic details of sexual assault, self-harm and suicide.
The first time she was groped at work, Freya says she was 24 years old, a newly qualified paramedic, and was cleaning out the cupboards of the ambulance station crew room.
“He came behind me without me realising. I was cleaning away, and he put his hands around my body and grabbed my breasts,” said Freya, which is not her real name.
“Then he said, ‘Well, I won’t bother doing that again’.
“People just laughed, some didn’t even look up from the TV. Like it was nothing, completely normal.”
Her story mirrors that of other current and former paramedics who, in several interviews with Sky News, painted a picture of widespread sexual harassment and a toxic culture of misogyny.
The head of the College of Paramedics, Tracy Nicholls, said: “Problems exist in every [NHS] trust, across all four countries in the United Kingdom.”
NHS England told Sky News that any form of sexual misconduct was “completely unacceptable” and every trust had committed to an action plan to improve sexual safety.
Chief executive of the College of Paramedics Tracy Nicholls
‘I had the career I loved stolen from me’
Freya said she put up with jokes and comments for more than a decade – until one day she was locked in the back of an ambulance and sexually assaulted by a senior colleague.
“He just put his hand straight down my top. I was like, in shock. I couldn’t move. I didn’t know how to react. I just froze, absolutely froze,” she said.
“If that wasn’t enough, he then took my breast out. I remember him sucking on my nipple.
“Then, he took out his pen… and he drew a smiley face above and below my nipple.
“I remember going into a station immediately when we got back, and I washed and scrubbed myself and got rid of the ink. He took a photo of it as well on his phone to send to me.”
Freya said it destroyed both her career and mental health.
“I have scars – mentally and physically. I had the career I loved stolen from me. And I’m lonely now, I’m on my own, because I can’t trust anyone.”
She was later rushed to hospital for trying to amputate her breast and even tried to take her own life.
Freya has since left the ambulance service and received a payout from her former employer.
‘A minority just feel that behaviour is acceptable’
After students began speaking up about their experiences of harassment, the College of Paramedics began an investigation, running support workshops for the trainees.
Tracy Nicholls, chief executive of the professional body, said: “We have found that our student or female student council members are experiencing misogyny and sexual harassment – if not on a daily basis then on a weekly basis, by a minority of people who just feel that that behaviour is acceptable.”
Ms Nicholls is particularly concerned with the treatment of student paramedics, some of whom reported to the College being pressured into things in exchange for being passed on assignments.
She said: “Sometimes it’s perceived as banter, but immediately there’s a power imbalance there for that student. And sometimes it progresses to a really difficult space where they say ‘I won’t sign you off, until maybe you come out for a date with me’ or ‘I won’t sign you off until you send me a picture of yourself’.”
Ms Nicholls said she would tell her two granddaughters not to join the ambulance service, unless things dramatically change.
‘Fresh meat’
Laura – not her real name – is currently a paramedic for a different ambulance service.
She describes sexual harassment as “incessant” in the profession. She says students and new recruits are routinely referred to as “fresh meat”, subjected to sexual comments, questions and jokes – even in front of patients – and are continually sexualised by some male colleagues.
“It’s exhausting,” she said. “You come to work wanting to help your patients but every day you’re dealing with inappropriate behaviour and sexual comments.”
“I realised I looked forward to the winter months where it’s colder, where I can wear my jacket more often so that I’m more covered up.”
“We’ve got the same uniform, you know, we’ve got a standardised unisex uniform, and I shouldn’t have to feel like I’m being objectified and looked up and down by my colleagues, but that’s what happens.”
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Laura is also concerned about the prevalence of relationships between mentors and mentees.
“I’m not saying relationships in the workplace are completely off the cards,” she said.
“But, very often the stories I’ve heard of include mentors who have got wives and kids at home, and almost preying on these students who they think don’t know any better.
“And the student looks up to this paramedic, and the mentor will play on that. And will take advantage of the power that they have.”
Laura loves her job and says she’s speaking out because she wants change to ensure she and other women feel safe enough to stay in the service.
Fear of reprisals
Carol King, a former operations manager at South Western Ambulance Service, where she was in charge of 130 staff, says there’s an inherent power imbalance and vulnerability to working as a paramedic that abusers can exploit.
“So you’ve usually got two people together in an ambulance, obviously it’s isolating, you’re really vulnerable. If there’s an age gap the newer paramedic or trainee might see the older one as their idol.
“And if something does happen you’re afraid of saying anything to anybody senior because you always think you’re going to get reprisals, possibly that you won’t get another job, you won’t be able to move up the career ladder.”
Ms King left the Ambulance Service in 2017.
Carol King, a former operations manager at South Western Ambulance Service
John Martin, chief executive at the South Western Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust (SWASFT), said: “We do not tolerate any member of staff not demonstrating our trust values and behaviours…
“We expect everybody – our people, volunteers and all those that engage with our organisation – to commit to ensuring SWASFT is a safe, supportive and inclusive work place for all.
“We have robust policies and procedures in place for colleagues and volunteers, who include our students, to raise concerns, and we encourage anyone affected by inappropriate conduct to have the confidence to come forward to enable us to take appropriate action.”
‘Completely unacceptable’
The complaints have been backed by a series of reports in recent years into various trusts.
This winter, the Association of Ambulance Chief Executives published a report highlighting concerns for “sexual safety” of staff working in the sector.
They found sexual harassment is deemed “acceptable” or a “rite of passage” in NHS trusts, which “normalises or creates a toxic culture” with “risks to mental and physical health”, and “potentially patient safety”.
They suggested the reason for such a culture lay in “specific factors, such as the nature of working within the ambulance service, having a hierarchical organisation, and having a workforce that until recently has been male dominated, are all thought to contribute to some potential issues with culture or attitudes”.
An NHS spokesperson said: “Any form of sexual misconduct is completely unacceptable and will not be tolerated in the NHS.
“NHS England is taking action to ensure the safety of patients, staff and students by rolling out better reporting mechanisms, training and support as part of the NHS’s new Sexual Safety Charter, and all trusts and local health systems have been asked to appoint a domestic abuse and sexual violence lead, with more than 300 now in place across England.
“Every ambulance trust in England has committed to a single action plan – co-produced by those who have faced misogyny or sexual harassment in the workplace – which commits to improving sexual safety in the ambulance service.”
Anyone feeling emotionally distressed or suicidal can call Samaritans for help on 116 123 or email jo@samaritans.org in the UK. In the US, call the Samaritans branch in your area or 1 (800) 273-TALK
The last blast furnaces left operating in Britain could see their fate sealed within days, after their Chinese owners took the decision to cut off the crucial supply of ingredients keeping them running.
Jingye, the owner of British Steel in Scunthorpe, has, according to union representatives, cancelled future orders for the iron ore, coal and other raw materials needed to keep the furnaces running.
The upshot is that they may have to close next month – even sooner than the earliest date suggested for its closure.
Read more: Thousands of jobs at risk as British Steel consults unions over closure
The fate of the blast furnaces – the last two domestic sources of virgin steel, made from iron ore rather than recycled – is likely to be determined in a matter of days, with the Department for Business and Trade now actively pondering nationalisation.
The upshot is that even as Britain contends with a trade war across the Atlantic, it is now working against the clock to secure the future of steelmaking at Scunthorpe.
The talks between the government and Jingye broke down last week after the Chinese company, which bought British Steel out of receivership in 2020, rejected a £500m offer of public money to replace the existing furnaces with electric arc furnaces.
The sum is the same one it offered to Tata Steel, which has shut down the other remaining UK blast furnaces in Port Talbot and is planning to build electric furnaces – which have far lower carbon emissions.
These steel workers could soon be out of work
However, the owners argue that the amount is too little to justify extra investment at Scunthorpe, and said last week they were now consulting on the date of shutting both the blast furnaces and the attached steelworks.
Since British Steel is the main provider of steel rails to Network Rail – as well as other construction steels available from only a few sites in the world – the closure would leave the UK more reliant on imports for critical infrastructure sites.
However, since the site belongs to its Chinese owners, a decision to nationalise the site would involve radical steps government officials are wary of taking.
They also fear leaving taxpayers exposed to a potentially loss-making business for the long run.
The dilemma has been heightened by the sharp turn in geopolitical sentiment following Donald Trump’s return to the White House.
The incipient trade war and threatened cut in American support to Europe have sparked fresh calls for countries to act urgently to secure their own supplies of critical materials, especially those used for defence and infrastructure.
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Gareth Stace, head of UK Steel, the industry lobby group, said: “Talks seem to have broken down between government and British Steel.
“My advice to government is: please, Jonathan Reynolds, Business Secretary, get back round that negotiating table, thrash out a deal, and if a deal can’t be found in the next few days, then I fear for the very future of the sector, but also here for Scunthorpe steelworks.”
British Steel declined to comment.
UK
Prince Andrew’s Pitch@Palace branded ‘crude attempt to enrich himself’ as Chinese spy documents set to be released
Prince Andrew’s efforts to make money from his Pitch@Palace project have been branded as a “crude attempt to enrich himself” at the expense of “unsuspecting tech founders”, as new documents may shed more light on what he and his team have been attempting to sell.
Today is the deadline for documents to be released relating to Prince Andrew‘s former senior adviser Dominic Hampshire and his interactions with the alleged Chinese spy Yang Tengbo.
In February, an immigration tribunal heard how the intelligence services had contacted Mr Hampshire about Mr Yang back in 2022. Mr Yang helped set up Pitch@Palace China, a branch of the duke’s scheme to help young entrepreneurs.
The alleged Chinese spy, Yang Tengbo, has links with Prince Andrew
Yang Tengbo. Pic: Pitch@Palace
Judges banned Mr Yang from the UK, saying his association with a senior royal had made Prince Andrew “vulnerable” and posed a threat to national security. Mr Yang challenged that decision at the Special Immigration Appeals Commission (SIAC).
Since that hearing, media organisations have applied for certain documents relating to the case and Mr Hampshire’s support for Mr Yang to be made public. SIAC agreed to release some information of public interest. It is hoped they may include more details on deals that he was trying to do on behalf of Prince Andrew.
So what do we know about potential deals for Pitch@Palace so far?
In February, Sky News confirmed that palace officials had a meeting last summer with tech funding company StartupBootcamp to discuss a potential tie-up between them and Prince Andrew relating to his Pitch@Palace project.
The palace wasn’t involved in the fine details of a deal but wanted guarantees to make sure it wouldn’t impact the Royal Family in the future. Sky News understands from one source that the price being discussed for Pitch was around £750,000 – there are, however, reports that a deal may have stalled.
Photos we found on the Chinese Chamber of Commerce website show an event held in Asia between StartupBootcamp and Innovate Global, believed to be an offshoot of Pitch.
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Who is alleged Chinese spy, Yang Tengbo?
Documents, released in relation to the investigations into Mr Tengbo, have also shown how much the duke has always seen Pitch as a way of potentially making money. One document from 21 August 2021 clearly states “the duke needed money at the time, and saw the relationships with China through Pitch as one possible source of funding”.
But Prince Andrew’s apparent intention to use Pitch to make money has led to concerns about whether he is unfairly using the contacts and information he gained when he was a working royal.
Norman Baker, former MP and author of books on royal finances, believes it is “a crude attempt to enrich himself” and goes against what the tech entrepreneurs thought they were signing up for.
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He told Sky News: “The data given by these business people was given on the basis it was an official operation and not something for Prince Andrew, and so in my view, Prince Andrew had no right legally or morally to take the data which has been collected, a huge amount of data, and sell it…
“And quite clearly if you’re going to sell it off to StartupBootcamp, that is not what people had in mind. The entrepreneurs who joined Pitch@Palace did not do so to enrich Prince Andrew,” he said.
Rich Wilson was one tech entrepreneur who was approached at the start of Pitch@Palace to sign up, but he stepped away when he spotted a clause in the contract saying they’d be entitled to 2% equity in any funding he secured.
He feels Prince Andrew is continuing to use those he made a show of supporting.
He said: “It makes me feel sick. I think it’s terrible – that he is continuing to exploit unsuspecting tech founders in this way. A lot of them, I’m quite grey and old in the tooth now, I saw it coming, but clearly most didn’t. And a lot of them were quite young.
“It’ll be their first venture and you’re learning on the trot, so to speak. So to take advantage of people in such a major way – that’s an awful, sickening thing to do.”
We approached StartupBootcamp who said they had no comment to make, and the Duke of York’s office did not respond.
With reports that a deal may have stalled, it could be a big setback for the duke – especially with questions still about how he’ll continue to pay for his home on the Windsor estate now that the King no longer gives him financial support.
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