Performance of troubled ambulance trust deteriorated

This snapshot of the troubled trust’s performance was revealed in the annual report of the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Clinical Commissioning Group, which described a “notable dip in performance” in some of its urban areas.

According to the CCG’s report, the trust reponded to 73.6 per cent of “red 1 calls” for immediately life threatening situations within eight minutes against a target of 75 per cent in 2013-14.

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This represented a single percentage point drop in performance from the previous year.

Only 69.4 per cent per cent of “red 2 calls”, which may be life threatening but less time critical were responded to within eight minutes against a 75 per cent target. Last year the trust responded to 74.3 per cent of these type of calls within that period.

The CCG’s annual report said the trust’s “historical trend of not delivering against… national targets continued throughout 2013-14”. Its performance had “deteriorated overall in comparison to prior year at both regional and local level”.

The report said the CCG had been “reassured” by the appointment of Anthony Marsh, the trust’s chief executive which it said had “considerable experience in turning around failing ambulance trusts”.

The CCG had agreed to revinvest into the trust’s recovery plan all the penalties and fines which it would normally be owed.