The tide is turning for an ambulance trust which was considered one of the worst performing services in the country a year ago, according to the chief executive.

Until July 2014, the East of England Ambulance Service NHS Trust was the worst performing of 11 ambulance services for responses to the most life-threatening Red 1 emergencies – such as unconscious patients or those with traumatic injuries – which should be reached within eight minutes.

But since October, figures show that crews are reaching these patients faster than the majority of other ambulance services and are now consistently ranked in the top five in the country.

Last month the ambulance trust exceeded the national target for Red 1 calls by almost three per cent, with nearly 78 per cent of emergencies reached on time.

Trust chief executive Anthony Marsh said: “Demand is up almost seven per cent on last year and it has been well publicised that it reached unprecedented levels during the winter.

“Despite this, our staff are working extremely hard and are reaching the most critical patients faster as well as getting back on the road more quickly after handing over patients at hospital.

“It is thanks to them, and the actions we put in place, that we have gone from being one of the worst performing ambulance services to regularly being one of the best.

“Our performance must continue to improve and we know we can expect to come under scrutiny, and rightly so, when we fall below expected standards.”