Ross town councillors had the chance to put their questions and concerns about the recent closure of Ross Ambulance Station to West Midlands Ambulance Service communications director Murray MacGregor at the town council meeting on Monday, March 9.

WMAS confirmed their plans to close the Ross ambulance base last month, with the news being greeted with outrage from local residents that such a decision could be made without consultation.

Councillor Julian Utting said whilst he could understand the need to make the service more efficient, his concern was whether WMAS could assure patients response times would not get longer due to the closure.

In reply Mr MacGregor said that the decrease in the number of patients being conveyed to hospital has resulted in ambulances being available to take more calls in Ross, with there often being a constant flow-through of ambulances in the area, with the operational team believing this is the best way to improve the service.

Councillor Phil Cutter added that the public perception within Ross was that WMAS were taking the service away and that they want reassurance they will receive the same or better service than they had before, and requested better communication with WMAS for the town council.

Mayor Jane Roberts thanked Mr MacGregor for coming to speak to the council, and said she accepted that the decision to close the Ross base was made with the intention to improve the service in Ross.

She added that as a town council it was their job to be sceptical of such decisions, and requested a monitoring of the new system along with response times so that the council return to the issue in a year’s time.