Number of ambulance staff leaving up by more than half as almost 7,000 walk away from NHS

• The number of staff leaving England’s ambulance services annually has increased by 51.2% since 2019
• In 2022/23, 6,968 ambulance service staff left compared to 4,609 in 2019/20
• Currently there are nearly 3,000 vacancies in England’s ambulance services

Ambulance services have experienced a mass exodus of staff in the last year, with a staggering 51.2% increase in the number of leavers compared to 2019 levels, a Liberal Democrat FOI has revealed.

Oldham Liberal Democrat Leader councillor Howard Sykes MBE said, “The NHS is in the worst state I have ever seen it in.  It is a frightening time to be a patient.  The government has driven our ambulance services into the ground and now waiting lists are growing with no end in sight.”
 
The research from the Liberal Democrats has shown that in 2019/20 the number of people who left ambulance services was 4,609.  That has sky-rocketed in the years since, with 2022/23 seeing 6,968 members of staff walking out of the door.  That is an increase of 51.2% in leavers.

Currently, there are 2,954 vacancies across all ambulance services in England. 

Councillor Sykes said, “The Liberal Democrats are calling for the Government to investigate the shocking rise in paramedics leaving the ambulance service as well as launch a drive to retain, recruit and train paramedics and other ambulance service staff to fill the gaps.”