St John Ambulance’s only station in Kent has been earmarked for closure as the charity proposes huge cuts.
Four staff at the Ashford base face redundancy.
One staff member, who did not want to be named, told KentOnline the cuts would have a huge impact – and could lead to longer ambulance response times.
He says he feels “disappointed” with the charity after more than six years of service.
“In Ashford there are four of us employed at St John’s and we could all lose our jobs,” he said.
“There used to be 12 of us, but many have left due to uncertainty about their future.
St John’s Ambulance First Aid Center in Maidstone Road, Ashford, is one of 12 sites across the UK proposed to close by bosses, with 48 jobs at risk during an internal consultation.
Staffed mainly by volunteers, the charity provides first aid and responds to emergency calls.
But bosses say they made the “difficult decision” to cut staff last year after a fall in revenue since the pandemic.
The employee added: “The cuts will take 25 ambulances off the roads across the country and will have a huge impact.”
He told KentOnline that the service in Ashford regularly assists South East Coast Ambulance Service (Secamb) with emergency calls in Kent.
He added: “I enjoy every second of my job helping people – that’s why I got into the emergency services.
“We do exactly the same thing as Secamb. We respond to 999 calls and a wide range of emergencies.
“It will be a huge loss across the country. Our NHS is a mess at the moment. Waiting times in hospitals are huge and laying off 50 staff will have a big impact.
“When we go, it will only be Secamb that will respond to these calls. People don’t get the response time we need. This won’t just affect Kent.
“I fully blame St John’s for that.
“They have had financial problems for many years. The new management team came in and promised us the world but didn’t deliver on any of it.”
Despite the restrictions, St John’s bosses say they will continue to provide life-saving training, education and support to the community.
A spokesman said: “In 2023 the charity announced it was making the difficult decision to reduce staff following a year-on-year drop in income since the pandemic.
“As part of measures to support the sustainable future of our organisation, we are also closing some of our buildings which are not being fully utilized or which have high maintenance or operating costs.
“This will enable the charity to continue to provide the life-saving training, education and support it provides to the community and its customers.
“Throughout the process, we work with our volunteers and staff on proposals, changes and future continuity of provision across the communities we serve.”
But an angry staff member believes the cuts are “unfair” to the charity’s paid staff.
He continued: “I work four 12-hour shifts a week and I’ve been doing those hours for six years.
“They’re selling buildings and cutting staff to try to stay alive.”
“Once everything has closed there will be 100 buildings left in the UK. There used to be 400 of them.
“I understand why they try to keep volunteers rather than paid staff, but I’m concerned that sometimes those volunteers don’t have that much experience.”
Secamb declined to comment.