The future of the London Ambulance Service

Our new report says innovative ways of working - such as combining ambulance and fire stations - will help London Ambulance Service cope with growing demand at a time of budget cuts.

The London Ambulance Service (LAS) is the busiest in the country, with 1.5 million 999 calls a year and, at a time of cost cutting and staff reductions, demand is rising.

Our Health and Public Services Committee says that to cope with these challenges, the LAS should work more closely with the capital’s police, fire and transport organisations, which are led by the Mayor, to find efficiencies.

The report says the LAS could share ambulance stations with the London Fire Brigade - currently 41 percent of ambulance stations in London have a fire station within 1 km.

We highlight innovative ways of working such as ‘see and treat’. This will depend on increasing the skills and training of paramedics and including doctors on ambulances so life saving treatment can be given more quickly, rather than just taking patients to hospital.

The report also proposes:

• The Mayor’s Office for Policing and Crime should review ambulance calls from the police – last year 300 ambulances were sent out every day at police request but only one of these was needed to save a life. The LAS should also consider paramedics joining police patrols to attend to road traffic accidents.
• The Mayor should have a more formal role in the oversight of the service, through representation on the LAS new Council of Governors.
• the LAS should be invited to join the London Health Improvement Board – chaired by the Mayor - and to participate in proposals drawn up by the Mayor and London Councils for integrating door-to-door services.

The Committee has now received responses about the report from the Mayor's Office for Police and Crime, London Fire and Emergency Planning Authority, NHS London and the London Ambulance Service.