Two ambulance services are to join forces and create a single trust for the South West after the bid was granted ministerial approval.
South Western Ambulance Service Foundation Trust has been given permission to take over ailing Great Western Ambulance Service, creating an organisation which will serve over 5.3 million people.
It was announced yesterday that Secretary of State for Health, Jeremy Hunt, had signed the deal and the new organisation would come into being on February 1.
Ken Wenman, interim chief executive of GWAS for the past year as well as chief executive for SWAFT, welcomed the news: "I have met many skilled and committed clinicians and managers within GWAS, mirroring the expertise I know we have in SWASFT. As a result, I am really looking forward to the great opportunity we have to take the best from each trust.
"This will further improve the quality of care offered to patients, as well as further strengthening the role of ambulance services within local health communities."
The possibility of a merger was raised more than a year ago when the service which covers Cornwall, Devon, Dorset and Somerset, threw its hat into the ring to merge with neighbours GWAS.
