The Suffolk Accident Rescue Service (SARS) saw an increase in the number of requests for assistance it received last year.

The voluntary emergency medical charity, founded in 1972, provides specialist assistance to the ambulance service and responded to over 300 calls last year. Almost 50pc of the SARS mobilisations were to patients injured in road traffic collisions or suffering cardiac arrests.

Ben Hall, operations manager, said: 'Our volunteer responders include anaesthetists, critical care paramedics and other specialists in pre-hospital care. These clinicians can undertake advanced procedures at an incident scene, which would not normally be possible outside a hospital environment.

The charity receives no central government funding and relies on voluntary support. In 2017, SARS received just under £112,000 in donations, an increase of around £700 on the previous year.

Mr Hall, who also oversees the charity's fundraising, added: 'It's great to increase our fundraising even by a small amount. For small charities like SARS, every donation makes a difference and even a few pounds can help buy a piece of kit, which could go on to save someone's life.

'We are very fortunate that all our clinical responders volunteer their time and skills without charge, which means that we can channel more of our funds into training, the purchase of vital equipment and keeping the charity running.

'We are looking forward to 2018 and hope that we can continue to have a positive impact for the patients we treat over the next 12 months.'

If you would like to support SARS or find out more about the charity, visit www.sars999.org.uk