Sussex Secure Mental Health Transport Staff Information

EMED Safe Care will provide secure mental health transport services within Sussex Foundation Trust starting from 1^st April 2025.

The commissioning organisation for this service is NHS Sussex ICB. Please note that EMED Safe Care is the exclusive provider of secure mental health transport, and no other private ambulance services should be utilised.

EMED Safe Care will provide the patient transport service. EMED Safe Care is a division of EMED Group, one of the UK’s leading health and social care transport providers. As a trusted partner to the NHS and Local Authorities across over 70 contracts, EMED Group delivers over 1.5 million patient journeys every year.

EMED Group has over 3,200 colleagues across the country and deploys a fleet of over 1,100 specialised vehicles. It also has a dedicated national healthcare call centre.

The service is delivered from the following base location:

Burgess Hill Unit 2,
Panattoni Park
Burgess Hill
BN6 9ZL

These secure mental health transport services are operational 24/7, 365 days per year, 366 on a leap year.

You can make a booking for a patient either by calling the EMED Safe Care Transport Booking Office freephone on 0300 777 4477 or by using the online booking portal. Access to the portal is restricted to healthcare professionals who frequently need to book secure mental health transport.

If you need to create a user account for the booking portal, please submit an email to support@emedgroup.co.uk, including your name, email address, hospital name, job title, department/clinic, and line manager. Upon receipt of this information, your account will be created, and you will receive a welcome email containing your login details.

EMED Safe Care has an escalation line that can be used in exceptional circumstances if any issues arise or if transport can not be provided within an appropriate timeframe. The number is 0300 011 0175.

• NHS Number
• Date of Birth
• GP Details
• Mobility requirements
• Secure Mental Health Risk Assessment – a risk assessment is conducted at the time of booking to determine the patient’s needs and the staffing levels required.

• Is your patient detained under MHA?
• Is your patient informal but a danger to themselves or others?
• Does your patient require secure transport to attend a hospital appointment or for section 17 Leave due to being detained under the MHA?
• Is your patient detained under the MHA and experiencing mobility issues?

This is not an exhaustive list but rather a guide to determine if you require secure transport.

Please also refer to the booking process flow charts:

EMED Safe Care Booking Process SPFT

Safe Care Booking and Escalation Process SPFT V3 March 2025

Patients who are not immediately eligible should also be pointed to the Healthcare Travel Costs Scheme (HTCS) – NHS

Transport is often the last consideration for people planning a patient journey, so please book as soon as possible to ensure your preferred collection time is available.

As the contract begins, you may also notice some of your previous providers undertaking the journeys. That is fine, as long as the journey is booked through EMED. EMED may occasionally use other providers to ensure that the journeys take place in a timely manner.

EMED is providing all non-emergency transport within Sussex. If you do not require secure mental health transport, please contact 0300 777 4444.

EMED will transport Detained/Secure patients.

Patients detained under s2, s136, or 135 as the primary detention point and then taken to a HBPOS are the responsibility of SECAmb and steps are being taken to reinforce this aspect.

A patient moving from a HBPOS to a ward, or another HBPOS will be EMED.

These journeys will be managed by EMED under the new NEPTS contract.
As long as the patient is eligible for NHS funded NEPTS they will be provided transport. Where they are not eligible, they will need to make their own way.

Primary/Emergency journeys from the community are still under discussion with commissioners/SECAMB, and potentially EMED. We will provide a clear answer as soon as available. There may be an interim situation where we still use EMED and SECAmb.

The ultimate aim is that there is no route for colleagues to step outside and book from anyone else once there is a system agreed solution.

If you would like more information about this service, you can call the EMED Safe Care Transport booking office freephone on 0300 777 4477 or email safecare@emedgroup.co.uk