Ambulance cover to double in Sidmouth after new depot approved

A new ambulance dispatch station will soon be created near Sidmouth, doubling the ambulance cover for the town and wider area.

The new depot will be created in a currently vacant unit at Kingsdown Business Park, Salcombe Regis, near Sidmouth.

The application to replace the existing building was submitted to East Devon District Council (EDDC) on Thursday, October 17, by the South West Ambulance Service Trust. EDDC approved the application on Thursday, November 21.

According to PCL Planning Ltd, South West Ambulance Service Trust's agent, the new site will allow for another 24 hour ambulance serving Sidmouth, Seaton, Beer and Branscombe.

Here is how the application describes the benefits of the new dispatch point: "The plan proposes the amount of resources in Sidmouth doubling from one 24 hour ambulance to two. This will have a huge impact in response times in the Sidmouth, Seaton, Beer and Branscombe area.

"The current ambulance station at Sidmouth is not capable of accommodating both the additional emergency vehicles or staff joining the team, due to its size and therefore the Trust is seeking an additional dispatch station in a location that can serve the area most effectively."

SWAST carried out extensive research on where to create a new dispatch station for the area and decided that the most effective location would be on the A3052, between Sidmouth and Seaton.

The units at Kingsdown Business Park were the only premises which fit the bill.

According to the planning application the building will accommodate a maximum of six staff at any one time.

At the end of last year, the South Western Ambulance NHS Foundation Trust announced that it had successfully secured an additional £12 million investment to support the delivery of front-line services inline with Ambulance Response Programme standards.

This means that the trust is recruiting in excess of 240 additional front-line staff across the south west over the next few years.