Category: First Responders

This bike is used by Bath first responders.

An example of a St. John ambulance bike, this one being used in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire. It carries the NHS logo because it is used as part of the NHS Medevent scheme. It is also to be used as a NHS first responder unit by the rider in his village.

DU03 YXV This Toyota Rav4 4×4 is operated by Churnet Valley 1st Responders. The car carries the West Midlands Ambulance Service crest and a blue light bar, very unusual for 1st responder vehicles as they are driven by members of the community trained in basic medical care. Staffordshire Ambulance Service (before being merged into West Midlands) were criticised by a Healthcare Commission report for allowing 1st responders to use blue lights to help cut response times.

SD57 PXP is a Ford Fiesta First Responder car which is operated by the Scottish Ambulance Service and is used by community volunteers to get to the scene of 999 calls.

HT05 HDD is a Ford Fiesta van that is used by community first responders on Hayling Island. The car is manned by trained community volunteers who are sent by the ambulance service to emergencies (but they can’t use blue lights or speed etc.). The island lies just off the South Coast of England and is covered by South Central Ambulance Service who will dispatch a traditional ambulance at the same time.

W949 OAL This Ford Escort estate is used by community first responders with Staffordshire Ambulance Service. You can see that it is decked out as an ambulance car but is not fitted with any visual or audible emergency warning equipment.



The rear view of the grey Escort that is used by the Dove Valley responders.

SD07 PXP is a Scottish Ambulance Service Ford Fiesta Van. This example is used as a first responder vehicle. Notice the lack of emergency warning equipment as the responders are not allowed any exemptions on the road. However the vehicle is brightly coloured to increase its road presence.



The rear view of the First Responder Fiesta van. Up to half a ton of equipment can be carried in the rear, and it is powered by a 1.4 litre Duratorq TDCi engine.

DU54 TFO This silver Nissan Navara is a Staffordshire Ambulance Community First Responder Vehicle.



The rear view of the Navara. Interestingly they have opted for red and white checkers on the back rather than the traditional diagonal red and yellow chevrons.

NU54 NYL is a red Vauxhall Corsa that is used by an ambulance service first responder in the Hurworth & Darlington area. It carries identifying signs on all sides. First responders are are usually local people who have been trained in emergency medical care. They are dispatched at the same time as an ambulance to a 999 but often arrive sooner.

Here is a photograph of a silver Honda and black Yamaha motorbike which are used for blue light work by MedicPlus Ambulance & Medical Service in Bristol. Also pictures are two of the riders who are first responders.

AJ02 CVE is a white Ford Focus belonging to a first responder team in the Lake District. The vehicle is used by trained members of the community to respond to urgent 999 calls in their neighbourhood in advance of an ambulance. They have no legal exemptions to the rules of the road, but having the car marked-up may help their progress.

DG03 CVW This Volvo V70 does not actually belong to the Mersey Regional Ambulance Service, although it does respond for them. It is owned and run by The Wirral Hyperbaric Unit and carries a doctor, nurse or first responder and occasionally paramedics to urgent ‘category A’ calls on Merseyside, including trauma, cardiac arrests and entrapments. Notice the green and blue flashing lights, with red to the rear too.