FOI 26-102 Ambulance Availability
Freedom of Information Request
- Reference
- FOI 26-102 Ambulance Availability
- Request Date
- 24 Feb 2026
- Response Date
- 03 Mar 2026
- Information Requested
I am asking for information on how many ambulances were on duty between 11pm on Tuesday 13th January 2026 till approximately 1.30am Wednesday 14th January 2026 which could have realistically been sent to the postcode ML5 1PW.
Please give details of the area you would consider feasible for any units to be dispatched from for a postcode of ML5 1PW and which would be suitable for a response of a stroke patient who is unconscious.
Additionally, I require details between those times/dates and based on the feasible area on which category of call the ambulances on duty were attending and responding/travelling to, including approximate times of despatch for each category of call and if there were any available resources at any point during those times and dates.
- Response
Under section 1 of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002, the Scottish Ambulance Service is required to provide information that is held and recorded at the time a request is received. The Service is not required to create new information, carry out bespoke analysis, or reconstruct operational circumstances in order to answer a request. As the information requested would require retrospective assessment, interpretation, and analysis of operational data that is not held in a reportable format, the Scottish Ambulance Service is unable to provide this information under FOISA.
The Scottish Ambulance Service operates as a national, dynamic emergency service, meaning ambulance resources are not restricted to fixed geographic areas. Vehicles may be dispatched to incidents anywhere in Scotland, depending on real time demand, capacity, and clinical priority at the time of the call.
Ambulances are typically signed on at the start of a shift but may be temporarily unavailable for a range of operational reasons, including (but not limited to) refuelling, vehicle cleaning, restocking, crew welfare, uniform changes, clinical handovers, or being allocated to other emergency incidents. Availability can therefore change frequently throughout a shift.
The Service does not record information in a way that allows retrospective determination of:
- which vehicles were operationally available at each moment within a specific time window; or
- which of those vehicles could realistically have been dispatched to a particular postcode, taking into account operational status, location, competing demand, and clinical suitability.
Determining this would require bespoke analysis, the application of complex skill and professional judgement, and reconstruction of operational circumstances that are not held as recorded information. The Scottish Ambulance Service is not required under FOISA to create new information or undertake such analysis.
