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Pressure on hospitals is particularly high this winter, with more than a dozen declaring critical incidents in recent days.

Hospitals struggle every winter with additional pressures due to the impact of cold weather, but the early arrival of flu this season and high volume of cases meant Christmas and New Year’s weeks were even busier than usual.

There are currently at least 20 hospitals that have declared critical incidents in England, although this is a fast-moving picture, and some trusts will go into critical incident for as little as half an hour.

The latest NHS winter situation reports give a more detailed look at the level of pressure experienced by individual trusts, including those with the worst ambulance handover delays and highest levels of flu patients.

Ambulance handover delays

When a patient arrives at a hospital in an ambulance, clinical guidelines suggest that it should take no longer than 15 minutes to transfer them into emergency care.

It is now common for handovers to regularly exceed this timeframe, however, when emergency departments are overcrowded and lack the capacity to keep up with new patient arrivals.

This is risky for patients because it delays their assessment and treatment by clinicians, and also reduces the availability of ambulances to respond to new incidents.

The trust with the longest delays was University Hospitals Plymouth, with an average handover time of three hours and 33 minutes over the week – two hours and 40 minutes longer than the average for England. It also recorded the longest average handover times for a single day, at five hours and 14 minutes on New Year’s Day.

Use the table below to search for local ambulance handover times:

On 7 January, University Hospitals Plymouth declared a critical incident at Derriford Hospital due to “significant and rising demand for hospital care”, though this has since been stood down.

The Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital Trust had an average ambulance handover time of three hours and 15 minutes, increasing by more than an hour from one hour and 51 minutes the week before.

In Royal Cornwall Hospitals NHS Trust, 83% of handovers took more than 30 minutes, the highest share among areas dealing with more than five ambulance arrivals per day.

This area also recently declared and then stood down a critical incident.

In total across England, 43 trusts out of 127 had average handover times of more than an hour, while nine areas had average handover times of more than two hours.

Flu

This winter’s flu wave arrived earlier than usual and has hit health services hard.

Over New Year’s week, there were 5,407 flu patients in hospitals in England on average each day, more than three times higher than during the same week last year and increasing by 20% from the week before.

The worst impacted trusts were Northumbria Healthcare and University Hospitals Birmingham, with 15% and 13% of all available beds occupied by flu patients respectively in the latest week.

Wirral University Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust had among the biggest increase in flu patients from the previous week, more than doubling from 18 to 42 patients per day on average.

Use the table below to search for local flu hospitalisations:

There are some indications that flu activity may have now peaked, with national flu surveillance showing a decrease in positive flu tests in the latest week, though activity remains at high levels.

Bed occupancy

Current NHS guidance is that a maximum of 92% of hospital beds should be occupied to reduce negative risks associated with overfilled beds.

These risks include the impact on patient flow resulting from it being more difficult to find beds for patients, and negative impacts on performance and waiting times, as well as being linked to increased infection rates.

In the week to 5 January, 92.8% of 102,546 open hospital beds were available each day on average, not far off the recommended level.

However, bed occupancy was very high in some trusts, with more than 95% of beds occupied in 43 trusts on average over the week.

The trust with the highest rate of bed occupancy was Wye Valley NHS Trust, with 99.9% of 332 beds occupied on average throughout the week.

There was only one day when beds weren’t fully occupied, on 3 January, when two beds of 322 were available.

Use the table below to search for local bed occupancy:

Kettering General Hospital NHS Trust recorded bed occupancy of 98.5% over the week. This trust declared a critical incident on 8 January.

Part of the problem for bed availability is prolonged hospital stays – also known as bed-blocking.

This is often linked to pressures in other parts of the health and social care system, for example when patients can’t be discharged to appropriate social care providers even though they are ready to leave hospital.

Just under half of beds occupied by patients in English hospitals last week were occupied by long-stay patients who had been there for seven or more days.

In seven trusts, at least three in five beds were occupied by long-stay patients, while in Barking, Havering and Redbridge University Hospitals NHS Trust the figure was more than four in five beds.


The Data and Forensics team is a multi-skilled unit dedicated to providing transparent journalism from Sky News. We gather, analyse and visualise data to tell data-driven stories. We combine traditional reporting skills with advanced analysis of satellite images, social media and other open source information. Through multimedia storytelling we aim to better explain the world while also showing how our journalism is done.

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Schoolgirl who attempted to murder teachers and pupil sentenced to 15 years in detention

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Schoolgirl who attempted to murder teachers and pupil sentenced to 15 years in detention

A 14-year-old girl who attempted to murder two teachers and a pupil at a school in Wales has been sentenced to 15 years in detention.

The girl, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was previously found guilty of attempting to murder teachers Fiona Elias and Liz Hopkin and a pupil at Ysgol Dyffryn Aman in Ammanford.

Emergency services were called to the school on 24 April last year, in what the trial heard was a “serious episode of violence” during the mid-morning break after the girl took her father’s fishing “multi-tool” to school.

She had admitted to three counts of wounding with intent and possession of a bladed article on a school premises, but a jury found her guilty of attempted murder in February after a week-long trial.

Following her arrest, the teenager told officers she was “pretty sure” the incident would be on the news, and added “that’s one way to be a celebrity”.

Both Mrs Elias and Mrs Hopkin “received significant and serious injuries”, Swansea Crown Court heard.

Mrs Hopkin was airlifted to the University Hospital of Wales in Cardiff after she sustained “four stab wounds”, while Mrs Elias and the pupil also attended hospital for treatment.

Ammanford in Carmarthenshire
Image:
Ammanford in Carmarthenshire

‘Changed my life forever’

Reading her victim personal statement from the witness box on Monday, Fiona Elias said the incident had shown her that life was “fragile” and had been “a steep learning curve”.

“Walking out on duty that day would change my life forever,” she said – a moment which “replays itself over and over no matter how much time passes”.

“It’s not easy, and I know I’ll continue to face challenges, but every day I’m taking step towards healing,” Mrs Elias said.

Addressing the defendant, Mrs Elias said “your motive was clear, you intended to murder me” but that she was stopped “thanks to Liz’s selfless actions”.

She said she was not “ruling out the possibility of a meeting with [the pupil] in the future,” but that she first needed to know she would “engage with the interventions that will be put in place”.

Outlining her plans to campaign for safer working conditions at schools, Mrs Elias said: “I never expected to give my blood, but I will always give my heart to Ysgol Dyffryn Aman and to the world of education.”

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The teenager, who can’t be named, is due to be sentenced in April.

‘Right place at the right time’

Liz Hopkin said it had been “the worst experience of [her] life” but that she was “glad” she was “in the right place at the right time” to protect Mrs Elias.

“I’m still here, I’m still alive, though at the time I was sure that I was going to die,” she told the court.

“Physically, my wounds have healed but the scars remain.”

Mrs Hopkin added that the thought of returning to a career in teaching now filled her with “anxiety and dread”.

“You were prepared to kill someone you did not know,” she said, addressing the defendant, who sat in the court for proceedings, until she moved to the dock for sentence.

“The decision to end my life was never yours to make.”

But Mrs Hopkin said she worried about the defendant’s future, adding: “I don’t want you to be punished forever but I do want you to take every opportunity to make your life better.”

Concluding her victim personal statement, Mrs Hopkin said: “It has changed me in ways I never wanted and that is something I will have to live with for the rest of my life.”

Pic: PA
Image:
Pic: PA

‘Very complex young girl’

Prosecuting, William Hughes KC said aggravating factors in the case included use of a knife, the fact two of the victims were “carrying out a public service” and that the offending took place in public.

In mitigation, Caroline Rees KC said the defendant was “a very complex young girl”.

She said she had shown remorse, had a “difficult background” and also the fact there were two trials.

Handing down his sentence, Judge Paul Thomas said the defendant would serve half of the 15-year sentence before she can be considered for release.

Addressing the defendant, he said: “What you did in school almost a year ago the day has caused a large number of people a great deal of harm and upset. It has hugely affected many lives, including, of course, your own.”

“The simple fact is you tried to kill three people, two teachers and another pupil,” he added.

“I think that it is very important here that what you did you did in full of so many other pupils…In my view you wanted as many of your fellow pupils as possible to see what you intended to do.”

The Judge added that “for one reason or other, [the defendant wasn’t] really listening” to the victim impact statements of Mrs Elias and Mrs Hopkin.

He said he did not think the teenager was “genuinely sorry” for what she did, adding: “You showed no emption or even interest in how they felt that day or ever since.”

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Nazi flags, patient ‘sexually assaulted’, ‘dog poo left at whistleblower’s home’: Sky News investigates UK’s ‘worst ambulance service’

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Nazi flags, patient 'sexually assaulted', 'dog poo left at whistleblower's home': Sky News investigates UK's 'worst ambulance service'

A grandmother who claims she was sexually assaulted by a private paramedic on the way to hospital has told Sky News she has been failed by the ambulance service.

Warning: This article contains references to sexual abuse and suicide

It comes as a staff survey of the same service – the South East Coast Ambulance Service (SECAmb) – heard damning claims of a culture of discrimination and bullying; with allegations of Nazi flags on team video calls and a “boy’s club” culture where whistleblowers are punished. 

It’s been more than a year since a Sky News investigation first heard of a culture of rampant sexual harassment and abuse in ambulance services.

These issues have existed for decades right across the country.

But now the GMB union, which represents ambulance workers, is calling on the chief executive of SECAmb, Simon Weldon, to resign.

It’s after a survey of workers heard high instances of inappropriate behaviour and bullying; with a huge fear of speaking out.

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It’s led the GMB to call for an independent investigation, with one representative branding the ambulance trust “the worst in the country”.

The trust told us it is committed to working with unions for positive change.

‘I just lay there, terrified’

Juliette
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Juliette was treated by paramedics after she was hit by a car while cycling

Juliette, 65, has spent four years trying to get her local ambulance trust to listen. In 2021, she accused a private paramedic working with SECAmb of sexually assaulting her.

Hit by a car while cycling through Surrey, she remembers lying on the stretcher in agony, afraid to move in case she was paralysed. Two paramedics carried out assessments for around 90 minutes before driving her to hospital.

But as soon as she was alone in the back with just one of them, she claims the male paramedic suddenly told her he wanted to “check her hips”.

“There was no asking, no consent,” she says. And instead of touching her hips, she claims he sexually assaulted her.

“With his left hand, he opened my shorts up – and put his right hand into my cycling shorts.

“Between my legs.”

Juliette
Image:
Juliette says she was left feeling ‘insulted, betrayed and humiliated’

She doesn’t want to go into the details, but she says she temporarily froze, powerless and terrified of what he might do. All the while he stared down into her eyes and said nothing.

“I felt so uncomfortable. Shamed, frightened, shocked. I didn’t want it to continue.”

Graphic created for Venables SE Ambulance piece about a letter sent in to complain.
Image:
A letter of formal complaint

She said her brain eventually “snapped into place” and she moved her legs. She claims he then removed his hand, and sat behind her head in silence for the rest of the journey.

“I just lay there – terrified,” she whispers. 

She reported it to the police the following day, but with no CCTV in the ambulance, it was her word against his. With no hope of a successful prosecution, the Met Police dropped the case.

Graphic created for Venables SE Ambulance piece about a letter sent in to complain.
Image:
South East Coast Ambulance’s response to a request for CCTV images

Then she turned her attention to the ambulance service, hopeful it would act.

We’ve seen correspondence between Juliette’s lawyers and SECAmb, which promised to respond to the formal complaint within 25 days. That was repeatedly delayed for several months.

“It was about seven months after the accident. They still hadn’t acknowledged anything to do with the sexual assault,” she recalls.

“They hadn’t answered any questions.” 

Eventually, they effectively said the assault hadn’t happened; claiming that Juliette herself had started to remove her cycling shorts, and that “consent was given” for an examination after she complained of a pain in her leg.

She unequivocally denies every detail of this account.

She says it left her feeling “insulted, betrayed and humiliated”.

Why – she asks – would somebody think she had “wasted all this time”.

“It’s too late for me,” she adds, but she is making a stand to help others avoid the same trauma.

Amelia (not her real name) talking to Sky News reporter Rachael Venables
Image:
Amelia (not her real name) talking to Sky News’ Rachael Venables

Culture of discrimination, harassment and bullying

The GMB represents a large number of the 4,000 SECAmb staff, and recently carried out a survey of their members about their experiences of working life.

From the nearly 900 responses, the union claims they identified a culture of discrimination towards women staff members with sexual harassment, bullying, and a general “boys’ club” culture.

Of those surveyed, 25.6% had experienced bullying and 26% had witnessed inappropriate conduct. Racism was witnessed by 16% and sexual harassment by 17.2%.

What’s more, 80% didn’t feel confident the trust would support them if they flagged concerning behaviour.

‘He’s always been into Nazi stuff’

Ambulance worker Amelia (not her real name) told Sky News she finally blew the whistle on inappropriate behaviour a few years ago after she joined a video call with colleagues to discuss staffing levels.

One of the managers joined them from home. To Amelia’s shock, he appeared on their office screen with a large red, white and black Nazi swastika flag prominently behind him.

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NHS manager joined call with Nazi flag

On his desk was a framed photo of Adolf Hitler, next to what she says looked like a young woman at graduation. On the bookshelves sat a red swastika armband and what she was later told was a World War Two grenade.

She was horrified.

“I kept looking around the room thinking, ‘why is no one saying anything?’… When I spoke to people afterwards they said: ‘Oh yeah… he’s always been into Nazi stuff.”

At first, she blew the whistle anonymously, but was told she’d have to name herself and put in a formal grievance for it to be investigated.

A report seen by Sky News found the manager’s “inappropriate behaviour” should have been challenged, but he still works for SECAmb.

Amelia claims she was isolated by her colleagues, frozen out of meetings and uninvited to team events, saying “it killed my career”.

An independent report found there wasn’t enough evidence to prove that she had been deliberately excluded.

At one point the police were involved, then days later, she says, “I had bags of dog faeces on my doorstep. That went on for a few days, I felt like a prisoner in my own home”.

“Whenever I heard sirens, I got palpitations. I was terrified of who would be in that ambulance.”

‘They become the problem’

When people like Amelia speak out “they become the problem”, says Lib Whitfield, a senior GMB organiser.

Lib started working with the trust eight years ago, after an independent report was published, highlighting behaviours similar to those referenced in this article.

Lib Whitfield, a senior GMB organiser
Image:
Senior GMB organiser Lib Whitfield

The culture is now the “worst it’s ever been”, says Lib, and she believes it’s the “worst in the country”.

“I am receiving calls every single day from members who are suicidal,” she adds.

Lib says the union has now written to the health secretary, Wes Streeting, with three demands.

“Firstly, we need a full independent investigation into the culture of SECAmb that results in actions and not just words,” she says.

“Secondly, we are calling for the resignation of the current chief executive who has overseen this getting worse.

“And thirdly, we are calling for an interim chief executive to be appointed who is external to SECAmb and who can have external reporting to ensure they are not corrupted.”

Read more
‘I was given a choice of bosses to sleep with’: Life as a female paramedic
Ambulance services must stamp out sexual harassment and bullying, report says

We took these allegations to the ambulance trust, which wanted to point out that the alleged events happened before Mr Weldon took over as chief executive.

It also said it had issues with the way the anonymous survey was conducted.

A spokesperson said in a statement: “We continue to work hard to make SECAmb a safe organisation for all of our people and are committed to drive real change.

“The historic cases highlighted were thoroughly investigated, including through independent external reviews, and we firmly believe these cases do not reflect the views of the majority of our people on how it feels to work at SECAmb currently.

“We continue to engage openly with the whole trust about the further improvements we want to make and about the changes needed for the ambulance sector as whole.

“We remain absolutely committed to working with our unions to achieve this, although this will only happen with constructive collaboration on all sides.”

Health Secretary Wes Streeting did not respond to our request for an interview, but in a statement a Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: “This is an extremely concerning report and we are looking closely at it. Sexual harassment or abuse within the NHS is completely unacceptable and must be dealt with appropriately.”

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.

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Liverpool win Premier League title to equal Man Utd’s record

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Liverpool win Premier League title to equal Man Utd's record

Liverpool have won the Premier League title after a 5-1 victory over Tottenham at Anfield.

Arne Slot’s men did it in impressive style, turning over Spurs in a convincing win.

It was a rocky start for the Reds after Dominic Solanke put the north London side ahead.

However, fortunes quickly changed in the first half as Liverpool scored three times without a response.

Captain Virgil van Dijk (centre) celebrates. Pic: Reuters
Image:
Captain Virgil van Dijk (centre) celebrates. Pic: Reuters

Salah on his knees in celebration after the final whistle. Pic: AP
Image:
Salah on his knees in celebration after the final whistle. Pic: AP

Liverpool's Harvey Elliott (below) and Jarell Quansah celebrate after full-time. Pic: PA
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Liverpool’s Harvey Elliott (below) and Jarell Quansah celebrate after full-time. Pic: PA

Slot cheers after the full-time whistle. Pic: AP
Image:
Slot cheers after the full-time whistle. Pic: AP

In the second half, it took until the 63rd minute for Mohamed Salah to make it 4-1 before a fifth followed.

The Reds have won the title in manager Arne Slot’s first season in charge, and move level with fierce rivals Manchester United on 20 league championships.

But it makes them arguably the most successful English club ever as they have won more European Cup or Champions League titles.

Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk told Sky Sports after the final whistle: “It’s special and it’s something that we don’t take for granted. It’s amazing.

“A lot of emotions before the game, during the whole week, but we got the job done and we (are) truly deserved champions of England. (Liverpool is) the most beautiful club in the world and I think we deserve all of this. Let’s enjoy the next couple of weeks and let it sink in.”

Liverpool's Kostas Tsimikas poses with a Premier League trophy cut out. Pic: Reuters
Image:
Liverpool’s Kostas Tsimikas poses with a Premier League trophy cut out. Pic: Reuters

Manager Arne Slot and his team after the final whistle. Pic: AP
Image:
Manager Arne Slot and his team after the final whistle. Pic: AP

Slot took over last summer from Jurgen Klopp, who guided them to their previous and maiden Premier League title triumph in 2020, when the COVID-19 lockdown saw matches played behind closed doors.

He is the first Dutch manager to win the Premier League and the fifth man to do so in a debut campaign after Jose Mourinho, Carlo Ancelotti, Manuel Pellegrini, and Antonio Conte.

Speaking to Sky Sports he said: “They [the players] did an outstanding job today. The main job was to win. Everyone said we had got it already. But we had to make sure and we got over the line.”

Several players, including Alisson Becker, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Virgil van Dijk, and Mohamed Salah, played leading roles in both the 2025 and 2020 campaigns.

Van Dijk and Salah recently signed new contracts extending their careers at the club.

Mohamed Salah takes a selfie with fans after scouring the fourth Liverpool goal. Pic: AP
Image:
Mohamed Salah takes a selfie with fans after scouring the fourth Liverpool goal. Pic: AP

Fans at Anfield during the game. Pic: AP
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Fans at Anfield during the game. Pic: AP

Fans in the stands at Anfield before full-time. Pic: Reuters
Image:
Fans in the stands at Anfield before full-time. Pic: Reuters

Liverpool will have to wait until the final game of the season – at home to Crystal Palace on 25 May – to be presented with the Premier League trophy.

It will be the first time the club’s fans will have seen their side lift the top-flight title in person since 1990.

This breaking news story is being updated and more details will be published shortly.

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