Call for more ambulance hubs in Shropshire towns

Darren Childs leads a group called Ludlow Needs Ambulances

More than 4,000 people have signed a petition calling for more ambulance hubs in Shropshire.

The campaign has been led by Darren Childs from Ludlow who had to wait 36 minutes for an ambulance when his daughter had a seizure in January.

The petition calls for hubs in five towns and for more first responders.

West Midlands Ambulance Service said it faces handover delays at hospitals in the region and more ambulances would be needed to improve response times.

It has said it wants to rebuild, expanded or relocate a number of its existing hubs, but to give people in rural areas the same response times as those in urban areas, it would have to increase its fleet by two thirds.

Speaking about the waits for ambulances to reach Ludlow, Mr Childs said: "They're taking over 40 minutes to get to people.

"By that point, if you've had a heart attack, or if you've had a stroke, the chances of you dying are higher in south Shropshire than if you are in Shrewsbury or in Telford."

Campaigners have been seeking support for their petition in Ludlow and have been lobbying the town's MP

Gill George, from Shropshire Defend Our NHS, said: "The response time is meant to be seven minutes.

"You're never going to meet that if you've got a minimum of a 40 to 45 minute drive down the A49 for the ambulance to come out from Shrewsbury to Ludlow."

She said the waits were "a nonsense and it will be costing people's lives".

The campaigners want hubs set up in Ludlow, Oswestry, Craven Arms, Bridgnorth and Market Drayton, and for more first responder cars to be based in rural communities.

Ludlow MP Philip Dunne has agreed with the need for more fast response cars but not for the calls for more ambulance hubs.