Ambulance trust upgrades service ratings across the South East
CQC praises improvements at South East Coast Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust
Last updated 29th May 2026
South East Coast Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust (SECAmb) has received higher ratings from the Care Quality Commission (CQC) after recent inspections showed significant improvements in its services.
The emergency operations centres and urgent care services have been upgraded from 'Requires Improvement' to 'Good'. The evaluations took place in September and November 2025 to assess changes since the previous inspection.
While SECAmb enhanced its services, it remains in breach of one regulation about overall management. Key strengths identified by inspectors include better staffing and safeguarding measures, as well as a more positive learning culture within the Trust.
Amanda Williams, CQC Deputy Director of Hospitals, Secondary, and Specialist Care in the South East, said:
“At this inspection, we were pleased to find South East Coast Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust had made some significant improvements since our last visit. It was positive to see the trust putting people at the heart of their care and treatment.
In emergency and urgent care, people told us staff had been kind and respectful and they felt safe. In one example, we saw an ambulance crew caring for someone with dementia, who thought they were in a busy shopping centre instead of an emergency department. The crew went along with this, which kept the person calm and reduced their anxiety.
Leaders had also fostered a positive learning culture, where managers investigated incidents and shared learning with staff to promote good practice and continuous improvement. For example, managers in the emergency operations centre noticed clinical assessments for people with mental health needs were often delayed, so they trialled prioritising these calls. Early data indicated this was resulting in positive outcomes for people.
However, we saw there were still areas for development. The trust was implementing significant changes to how it was organised and run, and staff described an ongoing disconnect between senior leaders and frontline teams, who didn’t feel fully included in decision-making. Staff wellbeing can impact the standard of care people receive so it’s important leaders address this.
We also found some concerns with the systems leaders had in places to monitor and make decisions about the services and we’ve told them where these need to be more robust.
The trust should look to build on these improvements and we’ll continue to monitor them to ensure this happens.”
SECAmb Interim Chief Executive, Jen Allan, commented on the Trust's progress, saying:
“I am incredibly proud that the CQC has recognised the significant improvements we have made. This is an important moment for the Trust and a real reflection of the hard work, professionalism and commitment shown by colleagues every single day.
The improvements are making a real difference for patients and communities and reflect the direction of our clinically-led strategy, which is helping us build a stronger, more responsive service focused on ensuring patients get the right care for their needs, first time.
This is a positive step forward but we know there is still more to do. We are determined to build on our progress so that our teams are given everything they need to consistently provide the high-quality of service our patients deserve.”