GeraClinic / Ambulance Response Index
The Gera Ambulance Response Index
One number for how fast NHS ambulances are responding. The Gera Ambulance Response Index is a 0–100 score over the real NHS England Ambulance Quality Indicators (AmbSYS) release, where 100 means both the Category 1 (7-minute) and Category 2 (18-minute) mean-response targets are met or beaten. For May 2026 England stands at 75.3 / 100 — mean Category 1 7 minutes 52 seconds, mean Category 2 29 minutes 13 seconds.
How fast are NHS ambulances responding in England right now?
As of May 2026, the Gera Ambulance Response Index for England is 75.3 / 100: the mean Category 1 (life-threatening) response time was 7 minutes 52 seconds against a 7-minute target and the mean Category 2 (emergency) response time was 29 minutes 13 seconds against an 18-minute target, per NHS England Ambulance Quality Indicators (AmbSYS). Gera recomputes it monthly.
The index combines each service’s Category 1 mean response against the 7-minute target and Category 2 mean against the 18-minute target, each weighted 50%. Every figure is the real published NHS England AmbSYS number; only the scaling and weighting are Gera’s, and both are set out in full in the methodology.
Index (England)
75.3 / 100
under pressure
Category 1 mean
7 minutes 52 seconds
target 7 min
Category 2 mean
29 minutes 13 seconds
target 18 min
Services covered
11
7 NHS regions
Ambulance response by service
The Gera Ambulance Response Index for each of the 11 NHS ambulance services, fastest first. In May 2026, North East Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust scores highest at 100 / 100 (Category 1 mean 6 minutes 12 seconds) and South Western Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust is under the most pressure at 59.6 / 100 (Category 2 mean 40 minutes 24 seconds).
| Ambulance service | Response Index | Category 1 mean | Category 2 mean | C2 90th centile |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. North East Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust | 100 / 100 | 6 minutes 12 seconds | 18 minutes 30 seconds | 36m 51s |
| 2. West Midlands Ambulance Service University NHS Foundation Trust | 88.2 / 100 | 7 minutes 54 seconds | 20 minutes 29 seconds | 40m 35s |
| 3. North West Ambulance Service NHS Trust | 86.8 / 100 | 6 minutes 55 seconds | 24 minutes 51 seconds | 48m 24s |
| 4. Yorkshire Ambulance Service NHS Trust | 81.8 / 100 | 7 minutes 55 seconds | 23 minutes 57 seconds | 49m 13s |
| 5. London Ambulance Service NHS Trust | 77.8 / 100 | 7 minutes | 32 minutes 21 seconds | 68m 45s |
| 6. South East Coast Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust | 77.7 / 100 | 8 minutes 9 seconds | 25 minutes 54 seconds | 52m 46s |
| 7. Isle of Wight NHS Trust | 73.7 / 100 | 8 minutes 24 seconds | 28 minutes 6 seconds | 58m 51s |
| 8. East of England Ambulance Service NHS Trust | 72.5 / 100 | 8 minutes 17 seconds | 29 minutes 47 seconds | 62m 26s |
| 9. South Central Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust | 66 / 100 | 8 minutes 49 seconds | 34 minutes 12 seconds | 65m 44s |
| 10. East Midlands Ambulance Service NHS Trust | 64.5 / 100 | 8 minutes 47 seconds | 36 minutes 27 seconds | 72m 16s |
| 11. South Western Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust | 59.6 / 100 | 9 minutes 22 seconds | 40 minutes 24 seconds | 83m 16s |
Ambulance response by NHS England region
The same index rolled up to the 7 NHS England regions, pooling each service’s published mean times by incident count. North East and Yorkshire is fastest at 88.3 / 100 and South West is under the most pressure at 59.6 / 100. Open a region for its services and full detail.
| NHS region | Response Index | Category 1 mean | Category 2 mean | Incidents |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. North East and Yorkshire | 88.3 / 100 | 7 minutes 22 seconds | 22 minutes 5 seconds | 120,475 |
| 2. North West | 86.8 / 100 | 6 minutes 55 seconds | 24 minutes 51 seconds | 100,069 |
| 3. London | 77.8 / 100 | 7 minutes | 32 minutes 21 seconds | 133,284 |
| 4. Midlands | 74.5 / 100 | 8 minutes 17 seconds | 27 minutes 56 seconds | 169,379 |
| 5. East of England | 72.5 / 100 | 8 minutes 17 seconds | 29 minutes 47 seconds | 88,443 |
| 6. South East | 72 / 100 | 8 minutes 25 seconds | 29 minutes 33 seconds | 128,634 |
| 7. South West | 59.6 / 100 | 9 minutes 22 seconds | 40 minutes 24 seconds | 91,805 |
- North East and Yorkshire ambulance response (88.3 / 100) →
- North West ambulance response (86.8 / 100) →
- London ambulance response (77.8 / 100) →
- Midlands ambulance response (74.5 / 100) →
- East of England ambulance response (72.5 / 100) →
- South East ambulance response (72 / 100) →
- South West ambulance response (59.6 / 100) →
12-month direction of travel
England’s mean Category 2 response time moved from June 2025 to May 2026 and is now 0 minutes 21 seconds faster over the period — the full monthly trend is on the methodology page. Category 2 covers emergencies such as suspected stroke and heart attack, where every minute of delay matters.
Gera Ambulance Response Index: FAQs
- What is the Gera Ambulance Response Index?
- The Gera Ambulance Response Index is a single 0–100 score that summarises how close an NHS ambulance service is to its Category 1 (7-minute) and Category 2 (18-minute) mean response-time targets, using the real NHS England Ambulance Quality Indicators (AmbSYS). For May 2026, England scores 75.3 / 100. A score of 100 means both mean targets are met or beaten; lower means slower than target.
- What is the current ambulance response time in England (May 2026)?
- In May 2026, the England mean Category 1 (life-threatening) response time was 7 minutes 52 seconds against a 7-minute target, and the mean Category 2 (emergency) response time was 29 minutes 13 seconds against an 18-minute target, per NHS England AmbSYS.
- Which NHS region has the fastest and slowest ambulance response?
- On the May 2026 data, North East and Yorkshire scores highest at 88.3 / 100 (Category 2 mean 22 minutes 5 seconds) and South West lowest at 59.6 / 100 (Category 2 mean 40 minutes 24 seconds). Regional scores pool each service's published mean times by incident count.
- Which ambulance service is fastest and which is under most pressure?
- North East Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust has the highest index at 100 / 100, while South Western Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust is under the most pressure at 59.6 / 100 on the May 2026 AmbSYS data. Every service's score is on the index and links to its full response-time detail.
- Is the index official NHS data?
- The response times are official NHS England Ambulance Quality Indicators (AmbSYS), published under the Open Government Licence v3.0. The 0–100 index is Gera's transparent scaling of those published figures — the formula is on the methodology page and reproduces exactly from the NHS numbers. It is not itself published by NHS England.
- How often is the index updated?
- NHS England publishes AmbSYS monthly, and Gera recomputes the index on each release. The current edition uses May 2026 data, published 11 June 2026. Each re-date is a real data refresh, never a cosmetic bump.
Not a 999 emergency but need a doctor fast?
With an England index of 75.3 / 100 and a mean Category 1 response of 7 minutes 52 seconds — above the 7-minute target — many people use a private online consultation for non-emergencies. A UK-registered GeraClinic clinician can assess, triage and escalate, often the same day. For a 999 emergency always call 999.
The workforce behind the numbers
Ambulance response depends on frontline paramedics, who are registered with the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC). Internationally-trained paramedics who independently choose to move to the UK can read the UK paramedic HCPC-registration pathway. Gera provides pathway information only and does not actively recruit from countries on the WHO health-workforce safeguard list — see our ethical-recruitment position.
Related NHS data
Source
Contains public sector information published by NHS England and licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. The Gera Ambulance Response Index is computed only from the real NHS England AmbSYS release below — every figure on this page traces back to it. The index (the scaling and weighting) is the Gera contribution and is fully specified on the methodology page; no value is invented.
Contains public sector information published by NHS England and licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: NHS England — Ambulance Quality Indicators (AQI), AmbSYS (May 2026, published 11 June 2026).
Editorial data review: figures on this page are drawn directly from the official public source cited here and were cross-checked against that source at publication; derived values (percentages, medians, index scores) are computed from those published figures using the stated methodology — nothing is estimated or invented. Last reviewed: 3 July 2026. This page is general information, not medical advice.
Informational/educational only — not a substitute for professional medical advice; a clinician interprets results.