The Trust’s Fleet Services Department has become the first of any emergency service in the country to scoop two prestigious accreditations.

Not only have the staff met the exacting standards set out in the Freight Transport Association (FTA) ‘Van Excellence’ award for the 3rd year running, but they have also picked up the Institute of Road Transport Engineers (IRTE) Workshop Accreditation.  WMAS is the first emergency service in the country to achieve this.

To achieve these awards, the Fleet Services Department has had to demonstrate exceptionally high standards in areas such as audit best practice and a range of compliance tests in areas such as the premises worked in, equipment, technical staff, management and clerical staff, documentation, quality and appearance. General Manager for Fleet Services, Tony Page, said:

“For the past 18 months our workshop teams have been attending training courses in vehicle fuel injection, diagnostics, electronics, air conditioning and the like.  Seven of our engineers have already progressed to ‘Master Technician’ level with many more working towards this.   Our end to end processes and level of data contained in our fleet management system have also been well received by the IRTE experts visiting our facilities.

“One of the biggest challenges we face is keeping up to date with the ever increasing complexities of the ambulances that we maintain.  Part of the accreditation is to be able to demonstrate that our staff are not only suitably qualified but that they are undertaking ongoing training to keep up with vehicle technology advances.   This is something that has been standard practice in the aviation industry and is now being rolled out with our vehicle engineers.

“These two awards reflect the professionalism and amazing dedication of our fleet services team to make sure that our operational staff always have vehicles available to respond to patients in their hour of need.  These awards demonstrate that we have not only one of the most modern fleets in the country, but they are also amongst the safest and best maintained anywhere.”