Jessica O'ConnorThe Association of Ambulance Chief Executives (AACE) has issued a call for new national policy interventions as violent attacks on UK ambulance staff reached their highest level on record.
For the first time, annual reported incidents of violence, aggression, and abuse against ambulance personnel surged past 22,500, marking a nearly 15% increase on the previous year.
Data compiled by AACE revealed that 22,536 incidents were reported across the fourteen UK ambulance services during the 2024–25 financial year.
This equates to at least 62 ambulance professionals being abused or attacked every single day – almost three per hour.
The assaults reported range from verbal abuse and spitting to more serious attacks such as punching, kicking, head-butting, sexual assault, and assaults involving weapons.
In response, AACE chair Jason Killens has written directly to health ministers in England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland.
Killens, who is also chief executive of the Welsh Ambulance Services University NHS Trust, urged ministers to explore fresh national policy measures to deter the rising tide of violence against ambulance staff.
He said: “These figures are truly shocking and reflect a pattern of increased violence, aggression and abuse directed at hard-working ambulance people who are there to help people in their times of greatest need.
“Frontline staff as well as call handlers are affected by this horrendous abuse, and this unacceptable behaviour has a major long-term impact on the health and wellbeing of ambulance people who are simply trying to do their jobs and help save lives.”
The rise in attacks coincides with findings from the March 2025 NHS Staff Survey, which reported that 38% of frontline ambulance staff had experienced physical violence at work in the past year.
Alarmingly, only 76% of those incidents were reported to NHS trust managers, suggesting that many assaults go undocumented.
The same survey also found that over half of ambulance personnel (52%) had experienced harassment, bullying, or abuse from patients, their relatives, or members of the public.
The AACE report further highlighted a troubling disparity in risk: female ambulance workers were three times more likely to be assaulted at work than the average female NHS employee, while male ambulance workers faced double the risk.
The summer of 2024 saw the highest number of recorded incidents, with 6,093 assaults, as violence traditionally spikes during warmer months.
Alcohol was cited as the most common contributing factor, followed by drug use and mental health crises.
Alarmingly, race and sexuality were increasingly becoming aggravating elements in these attacks.
Killens stressed the need for judicial consistency in penalising offenders.
He said: “This situation is now so serious that we are seeking to engage with UK Health Ministers at the highest level to explore new interventions that could help deter potential perpetrators of these attacks.
“We would also underline again that it is vital that the judiciary uses all available legislation to ensure appropriate sentences are handed out consistently to those found guilty of committing these horrific crimes against our workforce.”
