Attacks by patients 'just part of the job', says paramedic, as assaults soar

A paramedic who was once locked in a house by a man who threatened to set it on fire says it has become almost 'normal' to be attacked at work.

Alison Blakely has worked for the London Ambulance Service for 11 years and says she cannot even remember how many times she has been attacked.

She was speaking after figures obtained by ITV London show that attacks on ambulance staff went up by 14% last year on the year before.

In 2015/16, there were 439 assaults on London ambulance staff.

Between 2014 and 2014, just 9.8% of assaults resulted in a prosecution.

On average one staff member is assaulted each day in London and staff working in our control room regularly experience verbal abuse while taking emergency calls.