Rising levels of violence must stop says South Central Ambulance
In the last 12 months there have been an average of 95 violent incidents recorded every month
Last updated 25th Apr 2025
South Central Ambulance Service has revealed at least three members of their staff are being abused or attacked every day.
In the last 12 months there were 22,536 recorded cases of violence, aggression and abuse against ambulance staff in the UK which is an all time high and a 15% increase compared to the previous year.
The incidents reported included kicking, punching, slapping, head-butting, spitting, verbal abuse and sexual assault, and ranged from common assault to significant serious attacks involving a multitude of weapons.
Within the South Central region, there were an average of just over 95 incidents recorded every month.
Commenting on the latest figures, Kirsten Willis-Drewett, assistant director of operations at SCAS, said:
“Unfortunately we know that staff out on the road and in our control room face unacceptable physical and verbal abuse every day, and we wholeheartedly support AACE’s calls for more action to address this rising problem. We have worked with our local police forces to secure convictions against people who have attacked our staff and current legislation can see such perpetrators jailed for up to two years.
“As well as providing our staff with body worn cameras, and additional training to keep themselves safe when dealing with challenging situations or behaviours, we offer our staff a range of support should they be the victims of verbal or physical abuse. But with the numbers of such attacks now at record levels, more action at a national level is needed.”
South Central Ambulance is supporting calls made by the Association of Ambulance Chief Executives (AACE) for further national policy interventions to help combat the growing number of violent assaults against ambulance workers.