The mean response time for life-threatening emergency 999 calls in Wiltshire is over two minutes longer than the national rate.

The latest response time data shows that Wiltshire patients are waiting on average 10 minutes and 59 seconds for category one calls, compared to eight minutes and 14 seconds nationally, and 40 minutes and one second for category two calls, compared to 32 minutes and 17 seconds nationally.

Wiltshire Council’s health select committee has been presented with a report that notes response times across the South West have been under “increasing pressure over the last two years”.

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Wiltshire Council's health select committee.Wiltshire Council's health select committee. (Image: Wiltshire Council) The committee was provided with this update at its meeting on Wednesday, November 20 in Trowbridge County Hall.

Referencing the increase in pressure, the report explained that it is linked both to increases in activity volumes and hospital handover times at acute hospitals.

For the first six months of the current financial year, activity volumes in the BSW area have increased by 6.6 per cent compared to the same period in 2023.

The average hospital handover times during this period is around a 69-minute delay per patient, compared to the 15-minute national standard.

However, the committee was told that in some more extreme cases, patients were dealing with delays of over eight hours for their handover.