South East Coast Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust
Work wellbeing score is 61 out of 100
2.9 out of 5 stars.
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South East Coast Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust Employee Reviews

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Location
United Kingdom71 reviews

Ratings by category

2.4Work-life balance
2.8Pay & benefits
2.9Job security & advancement
2.4Management
2.6Culture

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Very rewarding job

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12 hours minimum shifts (but always work over that)No social lifeGet into a Union (GMB is best)Very rewarding but also tiringOn your feet and need to be physically fitGet great training in medical side with advances to move up in the companyTraining on blue light emergency driving Day and night shifts

Pros

You feel like you've helped at least one person each shift

Cons

Long hours, could get sued, stressful, burn out
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Avoid at all costs!!!

Former ECSW for 4 years. Most of my frontline colleagues were amazing, the managers were only interested in themselves and their progression, did not give a flying squirrel about our mental health. Managers made me suicidal twice in 4 years so have left. Loved the job on the frontline though.

Pros

Feel like you are helping the public

Cons

Managers are useless, no work / life balance, affects your mental health
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Insights into South East Coast Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust

Based on 28 survey responses
What people like
  • Clear sense of purpose
Areas for improvement
  • General feeling of work happiness
  • Energising work tasks
  • Time and location flexibility

No support

Great colleagues for the most part, standard clicks groups as with any job.Don’t expect any welfare or debriefs after tough jobs, the team leaders are too concerned with themselves rather than leading a team.
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High stress, long hours, fabulous team

Really sad to have left this job, as I loved the supportive team and was so proud to work for Secamb. Sadly the high stress of the job was too much and I had to move on for the sake of my mental health. The management could not have been more helpful and supportive, training was thorough and concise and on-going.

Pros

Great team

Cons

Long hours and high stress
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Very stressful environment

A horrible and very stressful environment where supervisors/managers are cruel. You are over worked and under paid. They do not care for the welfare of their staff. Never pay you correctly. There is no support system and everyone seems to have their own set of rules.Be prepared to cry almost everyday.
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Awful, debilitating

Unsupportive “leadership” team, awful work culture, if your face doesn’t fit, you have no chance of progression, obvious divide in specialist areas. The only positive is that colleagues who work on the ambulances are amazing, other than that there is no trust, confidentiality isn’t a thing. If you are seriously considering a career in the ambulance service, explore every other avenue first.

Pros

Colleagues on the same level are amazing

Cons

Management, empty promises
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Targets, no work/life balance

The job itself is what you would expect for a front line NHS ambulance service. No work life balance, busy and very little support from managers. The only plus is the decent training we get
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Great people, rewarding job

If you can stay away from the politics, it's a great job. Can be very rewarding. Badly structured and constantly changing shift patterns can take their toll after a few years though
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No day is the same.

Enjoyed working for the ambulance service and was very a nice feeling leaving the day knowing you have helped somebody. Managers were okay. Not the best when mh came up.
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Extremely Disappointing

The job as a paramedic is rewarding and no different wherever you work; a poorly or injured patient is the same anywhere. However, my experience with South East Coast Ambulance Service NHS Trust (SECamb) has been extremely disappointing. There is a strong culture of bullying at all levels of management, but mostly within the middle management tier. SECamb have appointed a very young and inexperienced junior management team, and their lack of experience and immaturity shines through every shift. It’s definitely time for me to move on to a trust which has experienced and mature managers.
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Stressful

You have to work to very tight deadlines. The volume of inappropriate calls passed to road crews means there is little time to fully assess, treat and resolve issues for some patients before the control room are chasing up. Very stressful, constant overruns, not family friendly.
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Nice job

The job is nice but if you have kids and want a work/life balance it’s not for you! Shifts are long and tiring, and there’s little to no incentive to want to help or do extra. You get minimum back from management
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Massive workload

95% of the time late off, late meal breaks, micro management, constantly under pressure. Bullying culture still exists. You will get mental health problems

Pros

None

Cons

To many to list
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Always late off

Always late off, late meal breaks or no break.. High stress no work life balance and grossly understaffed, you will suffer mental health problems and ptsd at some point

Pros

Free uniform nhs discounts

Cons

Long hours no thanks always late off. And late meal breaks or none at all.
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No support

No support given when there is issues. Not allowed to air a problem. Not allowed to br keen and willing to learn. Work like a robot. Degrading. Lowest in the picking order.

Cons

Clicky. Can't speak out. Relief work.
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Needs improvement

It’s a shame because I genuinely enjoyed doing the actual role. However, so much around it makes it unbearable. The company doesn’t look at retention, they don’t look at making staff happy and making them want to stay there. They need people who enjoy the job and can handle the pressures of the stress and that was me but I was driven away by other things. Firstly you are treated like you are in school, your break is timed, you have to take going to the toilet (a basic human right) out of your break time. If you are adding notes into a job for more than a couple of minutes, you get multiple people ringing you asking what you are doing because they don’t trust you. If you spend too long on the phone with someone, you get penalised. Call audits are absolutely outrageous! Failing people on audits and treating them like children is not acceptable, it’s not a nice way to learn. The 12 hour shifts are tough, other ambulance service in the UK get longer breaks or shorter shifts. The ambiance service is overwhelmed and instead of looking at making their staff happier, they just keep taking people on that constantly leave. It’s a waste of money and resources. Also, stop spending thousands of giving OFFICE staff a uniform, let them come in own clothes and be comfortable while they sit in the same spot for 12 hours and then less money is being wasted on uniform that people wear for a few weeks then leave. And more money can go on funding better resources. They have it all backwards, they could do so much more to retain their staff but they have no interest.

Pros

The people, shift swaps, overtime incentives

Cons

Shift work, micro managing
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Avoid if you can

I didn't even start my job with them, I was in the induction process and the trainers were awful, they were more interested with getting their lunch from the sandwhich van. They were rude and you felt looked down on, when using your initiative you were pulled for it. If you need a job or this is your dream apply but if you have other options I would opt elsewhere. I ended up not returning to the induction due to how they made me feel. Such a shame for a place thats suppose to help.

Pros

Recruitment where lovely

Cons

Everything else
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Basically a call centre

One of the worst places I have worked (I'm not in my 20s) if your face fits and you are prepared to brown nose you will do well here! Toilet breaks, leaving your desk to get a drink all comes out of your lunch allowance time, you are constantly hounded if you go a few minutes over you time allowance, your calls are audited and you have to pass or you get put on action plan, constantly hassled by the teenage managers who have no management experience, you cannot be Empathetic to callers, this is not a Healthcare environment, it is a call centre secamb do NOT value staff, they recruit 363 days a year, total waste of NHS money, would be better spent investing in and retaining staff. People constantly leave, shifts are long, morale is low and pay diabolical , Do NOT sacrafice your health for this job, I was there 1.5 yrs

Pros

Uniform

Cons

Too many to list
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Cog in a machine

You are just a number. A bum on a seat. Becoming increasingly focused on speed and targets than treatment and care of patients and staff.Not worth the damage it does. Avoid!
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Amazing place to have worked

One of the best experiences of work I have had. The company culture is beyond amazing, they genuinely care for each and every employee and their development. Such a positive environment and was a pleasure to work there, I felt supported, motivated and happy whilst working there. I had to leave as the office relocated.

Pros

Office culture, environment, development, pay, annual leave

Cons

Long hours, stressful role
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Very poorly managed

SECAMB is an embarrassment of an Ambulance service being trusted to provide emergency care. There is very little career opportunities for Ambulance Technicians specifically, NO welfare, very little consideration and support. The majority of management are incompetent, lack professionalism, not approachable and utterly clueless with what is required to support staff whether personally or professionally. Its makes no sense to have PARAMEDICS in offices completing admin tasks with the current demands on the service. This has been the case for many years now and has caused a big divide between road crews and OTLs. If there is administration work that needs completing then surely hire an administrator? The computer automated dispatch system needs a complete overhaul! This system along with the 111 service puts patients lives at risk and forces Ambulance crews to attend very low acuity patients, very regularly and subsequently, with current staffing levels, leaves many critically unwell patients waiting hours for a response. Many deaths could have been prevented I believe as personally myself have attended patients that have waited many hours for life-threatening complaints only to be found dead with no viable option for resuscitation. 111 and the CAD system has become a comedy meme and a general subject for road crews as a joke. It would be quite funny too if only it wasn’t people’s lives at risk.Staff are physically, mentally and emotionally exhausted and yet still are asked to work harder and be more efficient. The current sickness levels of staff off sick with stress is devastating. - 

Pros

None

Cons

Very poor management
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Overall rating

Based on 74 reviews

Ratings by category

2.4 out of 5 stars for Work/Life Balance
2.8 out of 5 stars for Salary/Benefits
2.9 out of 5 stars for Job security/advancement
2.4 out of 5 stars for Management
2.6 out of 5 stars for Culture

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