Local Heroes: North East Ambulance Service volunteers celebrated for dedication to community care
The awards evening, which is held every year in June, serves as an opportunity to recognise and thank volunteers for the work that they selflessly do during their free time for the region’s patients. This year’s ceremony follows last week’s National Volunteers Week (2-8 June) which celebrated volunteers across the country, as well as those who give up their time for the ambulance service.
Ninety volunteers attended the evening’s ceremony, with volunteers from the service’s partnership working with Newcastle University and Gateshead Hatzola included alongside community first responders, the ambulance car service, hospital porters, chaplains, and community ambassadors for the service.
The service’s chief executive, Kev Scollay, joined the volunteers for the evening’s celebrations. He said:
“I’d like to say a huge congratulations and thank you to everyone who selflessly gives up their time for our patients. It is an incredible sacrifice of your time that makes a major difference to our service and our region.
“Whether you are providing time critical emergency care before our crews arrive, are driving patients to and from their appointments, assisting our crews with hospital handovers, are providing welfare support for our colleagues, or are holding our service to account, you play a vitally important role in our service. I hope you have enjoyed the celebrations; I have thoroughly enjoyed meeting you and hearing your stories.”
Over the past year, the service’s 380 volunteers have dedicated thousands of hours to their roles as community first responders, ambulance car service drivers, hospital porters, and community ambassadors.
In 2024/25, the service’s volunteering team oversaw:
- 138 community first responders who have volunteered over a collective 41,000 hours for the service and have attended more than 1,850 patients across the North East
- 119 ambulance car service volunteers who have travelled over 2.8million miles using their own vehicles to transport over 77,870 patients to appointments at the region’s hospitals and primary care centres, supporting the service’s ever-busy patient transport service (PTS)
- 23 hospital porters who support crews to get back out onto the road by being the first point of contact for non-emergency patients at hospital
- 145 community ambassadors who work alongside the service’s equality, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) team to engage with local communities and raise awareness of our service
- 3 newly-appointed chaplains who provide vital spiritual, emotional, and pastoral wellbeing support for the service members
- 19 public governors, 3 staff governors, and 2 appointed governors who play a vital role in reviewing the performance of the service’s Board and the contribution it makes to the wider health and care system; providing an essential link to the communities the Trust serves
Gerry Henley – ambulance car service driver
Among the evening’s long-service award recipients was Gerry Henley, an ambulance car service driver who has volunteered with the service for an incredible 25 years. Gerry left his career as a mechanic in 2000 and joined our service as an ambulance car service driver as he knew he enjoyed driving and that the role would be very rewarding. When asked about his favourite parts of the job, he said:
“I’ve learned a lot in this role; by talking to people and seeing what they go through each week, I’ve become more grateful for what I have and appreciate that even the smallest of things like taking a patient home after an exhausting appointment can mean the world to them.
“No day, or patient, is the same. It’s a fantastic role for people who enjoy driving and meeting people from all walks of life, and making positive experiences for patients in your care. The past 25 years have certainly had it’s challenges, and the service as a whole has changed dramatically during my time here, but I wouldn’t change it. I’m really proud to volunteer for the service and be recognised for my dedication to patient care.”
Gloria Middleton – community first responder
Gloria Middleton is a community first responder for the service, and was commended for her twenty years of service. She said:
“I have really enjoyed my time as a community first responder and love my CFR family; we’re there for each other day or night, and many of us have now known each other for many years now. I really value being able to attend events across the North East and teaching people how to do CPR and what our service does. I especially like getting shy bystanders to have a go at practicing CPR on our dummies!
“Just being able to make even the smallest of differences, not only to the patient but also their families, is incredibly rewarding. I’ve had locals knock on my door to stop and thank me, and whilst I never do this job for the thanks, it’s a good feeling to know what impact you’ve had on someone’s life.”
Michael Padden - porter
Michael Padden is a volunteer porter for the service. Following an accident at work which led to a life-changing brain injury, he joined the service as a porter as part of his rehabilitation. Nine years later, and Michael has become a core member of our porter team, volunteering hundreds of hours to the service. He said:
“What I enjoy most about being a porter is being able to meet new people, especially elderly people who love to have a chit chat! Working as a porter has allowed me to work independently, which has built up my self-esteem and confidence a lot since my brain injury.
“Volunteering means you’re able to choose hours that work with your life, and I’ve been able to get into a routine of volunteering weekly. If you’re thinking about volunteering, go for it! It gets you out and about, you make a big difference in patients and ambulance crews lives, and you have nothing to lose!”
Lianne Fong – community ambassador
Seventeen-year-old Lianne Fong is the service’s youngest volunteer; representing the service as a community ambassador and also on a national level on the national volunteering health inequalities steering group. Following in the footsteps of her mam and brother, she has volunteered with the ambulance service for ten months.
She said:
“Being a community ambassador has really helped me with communication; I used to be far less confident and very shy! Through my time volunteering, I’ve had more opportunities to talk to people from lots of backgrounds and learn about their lives. This has helped me become a better communicator, alongside working with people who encourage and support me.
“When I first started volunteering, I was terrified. But the encouragement of the team helped me become more confident in my skills and abilities. If you’re considering volunteering, even if things like communication aren’t your natural strengths, you will constantly grow and challenge yourself to become better. I highly recommend it!”
