THE South of England Ambulance Service Trust has awarded Lex Transfleet a five-year repair and maintenance contract.

The arrangement covers maintenance, servicing and repairs, tyres, windscreens and a breakdown recovery service across Sussex, Kent, Royal Berkshire, Oxfordshire, Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire and Two Shires ambulance areas. The contract is for 125 vehicles, comprising a variety of accident and emergency ambulances and patient transport units.

The Trust worked with PCC Leasing Services, consultant to NHS Ambulance Trusts in the UK, when it decided to outsource its fleet management and launched the tender process.

Lex Transfleet's director of fleet management Phil Wood said: 'Thanks to a lengthy period of research on our part our fleet management team has an in-depth understanding of the pressures of working within the NHS Ambulance Trusts, including budget management, maintenance criteria and servicing needs. 'Our initial investment has paid off and we are looking forward to extending our service in this area further in the future.'

Lex Transfleet provides a contract manager to each NHS Trust, ensuring, it says, that the customer has 'a dedicated, experienced specialist, available at all times'.