Midhurst Ambulance Station goes up for sale

Midhurst Ambulance Station in Bepton Road is up for sale as plans for a centralised hub at a purpose built '˜make ready' centre in Tangmere make shape.

A spokesman for the South East Coast Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust (SECAmb) said: ““Midhurst Ambulance Station is being marketed for sale with the option for part of the site be retained by SECAmb as a response post.”

“Further response post sites are under construction in Bognor and Chichester, which will see us moving from one ambulance station in each town to two response posts thereby giving us a greater spread of cover.”

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The advent of ‘Make Ready’ meant the Trust did not need large stations to store equipment, restock and maintain vehicles.

“In addition crews will no longer have to clean and restock their own vehicles thereby taking them away from their main patient care duties. Across our region we will also continue to explore other potential sites for additional response posts based on patient demand.”

The trust hopes the new ‘make ready’ centre on Chichester Business Park in Tangmere will be open for business by August. It will provide facilities for ambulances to be prepared and modern training and meeting facilities.

“Crews currently reporting to Chichester, Midhurst, Bognor Regis and Pulborough will instead begin their shifts at the new centre. While ambulance staff will start and end their shifts from the new centre the service provided to the region will be maintained with a number of Ambulance Community Response Posts (ACRPs). Shifts will also begin and end on a staggered basis to ensure ambulance cover is maintained in all areas served by the new centre.”

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The spokesman said the ‘Make Ready’ system had been operating in other SECAmb areas for a number of years; “we are confident of the benefits. The changes also ensure we have modern facilities as we look to develop our estate and move away from older buildings which in some cases are in the wrong place for patient demand and can cost more to maintain.”

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