Ambulance trust management push announced

Ambulance trusts will be helped to increase their management capacity through a leadership development portfolio, which will be set up over the next six months, health minister Rosie Winterton has announced.The development portfolio will be part of the improvement partnership for ambulance services launched in September and will be funded through the existing£1m budget.Ms Winterton told delegates at a 'learning exchange' conference for ambulance trusts organised by the Modernisation Agency last week that 'the development portfolio is designed to supplement local funding, and to give ambulance trusts easier access to development opportunities at both board level, and in front-line leadership roles'.