Firefighters from across the five south west fire and rescue services are to continue to provide vital life-saving support alongside the ambulance service.

Since the early stages of the pandemic, firefighters have been working with ambulance crews from South Western Ambulance Service (SWASFT) to assist during medical emergencies.

The shared crews have so far attended in excess of 30,000 calls, more than half of which are within the highest two priority calls, which are to people in life-threatening or serious conditions.

With the current winter pressures on the NHS and surge in Omicron cases, this arrangement has been extended and will now continue until April 2022.

Strong partnerships between fire and ambulance services are not new. Fire crews are often called upon to gain entry to houses so that paramedics can see to patients and some fire stations have staff who are trained to give basic life support to people until the arrival of an emergency ambulance.

Under the agreement, fire officers will continue to work alongside ambulance staff by driving vehicles and assisting clinicians to provide patient-focused care.