News

Police stay tight-lipped about hospital runs

Published

12 years ago

September 2, 2014

DYFED POWYS POLICE force has declined to provide information to The Herald about its use of police cars as make-shift ambulances as they have deemed it too time consuming and not worth their effort.

According to figures released by Plaid Cymru, who made Freedom of Information requests to each Welsh police force, more than 600 patients in Wales had to be taken to hospitals by police cars rather than ambulances over the last three years. The Welsh Ambulance Service said it was missing its eight-minute target and crews were “tied up” and unable to respond to other calls. Police dealt with a wide range of patients, including those who had attempted suicide, been involved in assaults or stabbings, suffered drink-related injuries or had hypothermia. While 600 is the figure from South Wales Police, North Wales Police and Gwent Police, Wales’ largest force Dyfed Powys did not provide any figures.

The Herald asked the Force: “On how many occasions in each of the financial years 2011-12, 2012- 13 and 2013-14 have the force been asked to take patients to hospital in police vehicles because of a lack of availability of ambulances to carry out the task?” The response that came back that an exemption to providing this information, freely available apparently under the Freedom of Information, applied and told us it would take a staggering 9635 hours – over a year of man hours to provide the Herald with the basic information given freely by other Welsh police forces.

While the Welsh Government claims that the figures cited represent less than 0.05% of all calls made to the Ambulance Service, the situation has been pounced upon as evidence of the growing crisis in the Welsh Ambulance Service at a time when Health Board service reorganisations are increasing the burden placed upon the grossly under-performing service. Mike Collins, director of service delivery at the ambulance service, said the organisation was working as hard as it could take patients to hospital as quickly as possible. “The trust is working in partnership with police forces across Wales to reduce instances where our emergency colleagues are awaiting an ambulance response,” he added. “Both the trust and all four police forces maintain frequent contact and are building on the close relationship in support of each other and their staff.

“Despite the increase in calls that we experience year on year we are actually reaching more and more people across Wales than ever before.” The crisis in Ambulance provision was highlighted by performance figures released in June which showed a catastrophic failure by the Welsh Ambulance Trust to meet minimum performance levels set by the Welsh Government. The figures show that 50.8% of ambulances in Pembrokeshire arrived at the scene of an immediate life-threatening Category A call within 8 minutes. The target is 65%. Neighbouring counties of Ceredigion and Carmarthenshire achieved better figures of 53.3% and 51.9% respectively, and the average for the whole of Wales was 54.1%.

The death of three years-old Angel Jade Smith of Carmarthen shows the depth of the challenge facing those seeking to improve first responder times. Having been recovered from a serious house fire, Angel received treatment for twenty minutes at the scene and had been transported to Glangwili Hospital by police officers before an ambulance arrived, forty minutes after being called. Carmarthen Ambulance station is only seven minutes from the family’s home. The Ambulance Service announced an enquiry into the matter, but a search of their website for further information on the incident drew a blank.

Community

PCSO clocks in after villagers raise speeding fears

Published

18 minutes ago

April 9, 2026

Tom Sinclair

HERBRANDSTON residents flagged fast-moving traffic as a key concern, prompting police to carry out speed checks in the village.

Concern over speeding in Herbrandston has prompted a local police response, with PCSO Adam out in the village carrying out speed checks after residents raised the issue through DPP Connect.

Milford Haven and Neyland Police said the concerns emerged after officers signed local people up to the messaging service, which allows residents to share feedback and receive updates from police.

Many of those who responded said speeding through the village was one of their main worries.

In response, PCSO Adam was deployed to monitor traffic and check vehicle speeds.

The move is likely to be welcomed by residents who have grown tired of motorists treating the village like a racetrack.

Community

Walk the Path for Wellbeing to span three counties in 2026

Published

17 hours ago

April 8, 2026

Tom Sinclair

THE PEMBROKESHIRE COAST NATIONAL PARK AUTHORITY is inviting communities, workplaces, families and friends to take part in the 2026 Walk the Path for Wellbeing challenge, with this year’s event expanding across three counties for the first time.

Taking place on Sunday, May 10 and Monday, May 11, the challenge will bring people together to celebrate the spectacular West Wales coastline through walking and other forms of active travel, while highlighting the strong links between nature, movement and wellbeing. A reserve weekend of May 17 and 18 has also been set aside in the event of severe weather.

Building on feedback from last year, the event will now take place over two days rather than one, giving more people the opportunity to get involved and creating a longer window for celebration, storytelling and community spirit.

While last year’s challenge focused on the 186-mile Pembrokeshire Coast, this year’s event will also include sections of Carmarthenshire and Ceredigion, bringing even more communities into the shared coastal celebration.

The two-day event will feature self-led sections for group entry. With the focus firmly on enjoyment, there is no pressure to complete every stage, and participants are encouraged to do only as much as they feel comfortable with. Together, those individual efforts will contribute to a shared goal of covering the full 313 miles of coastline.

Angela Robinson, Health and Wellbeing Officer at the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park Authority, said: “The coast has an extraordinary ability to lift people, connect communities and create lasting memories. By extending the event across two days and into neighbouring counties, we’re opening the door to even more people to celebrate that connection together and share their experiences on social media.”

Health

Nursing graduate jobs crisis warning as NHS pressures deepen

Published

17 hours ago

April 8, 2026

Tom Sinclair

THE ROYAL COLLEGE OF NURSING WALES has warned of a growing jobs crisis for newly qualified nurses, saying a shortage of Band 5 posts could leave up to half of this year’s nursing graduates without work when recruitment opens.

The union said the situation was particularly alarming given the severe pressures already facing NHS Wales, with staff continuing to report overcrowded wards, unsafe conditions and unmanageable workloads across multiple health boards.

RCN Wales said the lack of available jobs for newly trained nurses pointed to a serious failure in workforce planning. It warned that losing new entrants to the profession would place even more strain on already overstretched services and could further affect patient care.

The organisation said the situation also undermined the Welsh Government’s and NHS Wales’ duty to improve the quality and safety of care.

RCN Wales is calling on the Welsh Government to provide urgent clarity on the scale of the shortfall, set out credible long-term workforce planning, and introduce immediate system-wide measures to recruit, retain and deploy the nursing workforce Wales needs.

The union said it had received assurances that students would not be penalised if posts were unavailable. That includes being released from any obligation to work in Wales and not being required to repay tuition fee support where workforce shortages prevent them from securing employment.

Professor Sandy Harding, Associate Director of Nursing at RCN Wales, said: “The situation facing newly registered nurses is deeply concerning and exposes serious failures in workforce planning.

“It is becoming increasingly clear that this situation is being driven by financial constraints, including the freezing of vacant posts within local health boards. Our NHS is under intense pressure, yet hundreds of newly qualified nurses may have no posts to enter. This is simply unacceptable.

“These students stepped forward for Wales, trained through immense challenges, and now face uncertainty at the very moment the system needs them most. They deserve far better.

“Every newly qualified nurse will be vital to meeting Wales’s care needs. The RCN will continue to demand transparency, accountability and long-term planning from the system. We will not stop speaking up for students, for our safety-critical nursing workforce, and for the people who rely on safe, high-quality care.”