On Waterloo Road you will find the headquarters for the London Ambulance Service, which has been in this building since 1973.
On their forecourt you will find three ambulances: a 1949 Daimler DC27, a 1965 Morris LD and a 2004 Mercedes-Benz Sprinter Ambulance.
The 1949 Daimler DC27 is one of 120 that were built. This was the first, fleet number A1 and it remained in operation until the late 1950s.
The Morris LD ambulance replaced the Daimler DC27, coming into service in 1965. Shorter, lighter and more manoeuvrable it was better suited to London's congested roads.
The 2004 Mercedes-Benz Sprinter carries far more equipment than any of its predecessors, which only carried a stretcher, oxygen and treatment boxes, as they weren't expected to do much remedial work at the scene.
Affixed to the wall of the headquarters are various information boards which give a history of the service, along with photographs taken throughout the years.
A small well-maintained memorial garden is a space for family, friends and work colleagues of the staff and volunteers who have died, in service or retirement, to come and remember them.
There is also a memorial plaque, which is a copy of a plaster relief sculpted by Station Officer D.M. Thrupp of the London Auxiliary Ambulance Service, in 1941.
In April 2021 a tree was planted, in the memorial garden, to remember London Ambulance Service staff who died during the COVID-19 pandemic.
This year marks 60 years of the London Ambulance Service, as we know it now. So, let us take a look at its remarkable history.
Serving around 8.6 million people, the London Ambulance Service is the busiest ambulance service in the United Kingdom and one of the busiest in the world, employing around 5,300 staff. In a typical year the London Ambulance Service responds to over 2.1 million 999 calls and attends 1.2 million incidents.
Brief History
In 1818, a parliamentary select committee recommended that provision be made for carrying infectious patients in London "which would prevent the use of coaches or sedan chairs". However, nothing was done.
In 1866, a 'Hospital Carriage Fund' provided six carriages to hospitals in the metropolitan area. These were for the use of patients with smallpox or other infectious diseases, provided that they pay for the hire of the horses.
In 1879, the first permanent ambulance service in London was established, by the Metropolitan Asylums Board. The new 'Poor Law Act' empowered them "to provide and maintain carriages suitable for the conveyance of persons suffering from any infectious disorder".
In 1883, the first ambulance service became operational, with six hospitals operating horse-drawn 'land ambulances'. These six hospitals meant that nearly the whole of London was within 3 miles (4.8 km) of an ambulance. There was also a fleet of four paddle steamer 'river ambulances' that transported smallpox patients along the River Thames, to Deptford, where they could be quarantined on hospital ships.
In 1897, a horse-drawn ambulance tramway was constructed, to allow the transfer of patients between hospitals at Joyce Green and Long Reach.
In 1902, the Metropolitan Asylums Board introduced its first steam-driven ambulance and then, in 1904, their first motor ambulance. Legally, the Metropolitan Asylums Board was only to carry infectious patients, but they had also been carrying accident victims and emergency medical cases.
In 1912, the last horse-drawn ambulances were withdrawn from service.
In 1915, the first Emergency Ambulance Service was established and was under the control of the Chief of the London Fire Brigade. The Metropolitan Asylums Board Ambulance Service was the first public body to employ female drivers.
In 1916, Bloomsbury Ambulance Station became the first ambulance station, in Britain, to be entirely staffed by women.
In 1929, the Local Government Act 1929 meant that London County Council took over control from the Metropolitan Asylums Board. Along with the 21 ambulances already under the control of London County Council, they soon had 107 motor ambulances, from the Metropolitan Asylums Board, 46 ambulances, which were run by 'poor law unions', and the River Ambulance Service. At this point they were the largest user of civil ambulances in the world.
In 1932, the River Ambulance Service was disbanded.
In 1939, the London Auxiliary Ambulance Service was created to support the London Ambulance Service in handling casualties from air raids. This service was operated by over 10,000 people, mainly women, from all walks of life, from 39 stations across London. Their ambulances were hastily converted delivery vans and commercial vehicles.
In 1948, the National Health Service Act 1946 made it a requirement that ambulances were to be available to anyone who needed them.
In 1965, with the creation of the county of Greater London, the nine existing ambulance services amalgamated to become the London Ambulance Service.
In 1974, following a reorganisation of the National Health Service, control of the London Ambulance Service was transferred from local government to the South West Thames Regional Health Authority.
In 1985, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II awards the Crown Badge to NHS Ambulance Services.
In 1996, the London Ambulance Service became an NHS Trust. They are also granted a coat of arms by Her Majesty's College of Arms.
In 2000, the London Ambulance Service introduced bicycles to respond to patients in Central London.
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