Construction work has commenced on South East Coast Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust's (SECAmb's) new multi-purpose ambulance, 999 and NHS 111 centre in Gillingham.

The development will include 999 and 111 call centre operations as well as a Make Ready Centre. Building work at the Bredgar Road site follows planning permission being granted last year.

The contractor, Westridge Construction, is now on site carrying out groundworks ahead of construction. The centre is expected to become fully operational in Autumn 2022.

SECAmb's Make Ready vehicle preparation and maintenance system will occupy the two lower floors while staff currently based at the Trust's East 999 Emergency Operations Centre (EOC) in Coxheath and Trust NHS 111 staff, currently based in Ashford, Kent, will benefit from modern open-plan offices above.

-- Advertisement --

Integrating both 999 and 111 services is a key part of SECAmb’s strategy to deliver more joined up integrated care and to increase efficiency. The development will also bring the east of SECAmb's region in line with its West Emergency Operations Centre (including NHS 111), based in Crawley, which opened in 2017.

SECAmb's Make Ready system, which is already in place across much of its region, is a vehicle preparation system which sees specialist teams of staff employed to clean, restock and maintain the Trust's fleet.

Ambulance crews currently starting and ending their shifts at Medway Ambulance Station in Chatham will, instead, start and finish at the new centre. They will then respond from ambulance community response posts across the region with suitable rest facilities for crews between calls and when on a break.

Staff based in Sheppey will continue to start and end their shifts from the ambulance station on the island, which has undergone a major refurbishment and upgrade to provide new educational and training facilities.

SECAmb currently operates nine Make Ready Centres across its region with Brighton the latest centre to open in December 2020.