Bedfordshire & Hertfordshire Emergency Critical Care Scheme

What Bedfordshire & Hertfordshire Emergency Critical Care Scheme does

Bedfordshire & Hertfordshire Emergency Critical Care Scheme (BHECCS) is a registered charity in England and Wales (Charity No: 1206363) that provides volunteer-delivered pre-hospital emergency critical care to patients suffering life-threatening injury or illness in Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire. The organisation is activated by the East of England Ambulance Service NHS Trust (EEAST) and dispatches volunteer Critical Care Paramedics and Doctors to the most serious 999 calls, who respond either in their own vehicles from home or in a dedicated Volvo Rapid Response Vehicle donated by Smarter Metering Service. Clinicians often continue delivering advanced care while travelling in the back of a land ambulance to hospital.

The core "technology" is human clinical expertise consisting of NHS-experienced pre-hospital physicians and advanced paramedics carrying life-saving drugs, equipment, and treatments not typically available on standard emergency ambulances. Service capabilities include advanced pain relief, pre-hospital sedation, emergency surgical airway, thoracostomy, pre-hospital emergency anaesthesia, thoracotomy, resuscitative caesarean section, and amputation when required, alongside clinical leadership, decision-making, and hospital triage support. The scheme is affiliated with BASICS (British Association for Immediate Care) and is governed by a board of trustees chaired by Junaid Mughal.

BHECCS operates as a free, donation-funded service with no government or NHS funding. Revenue is sourced entirely from public donations and corporate contributions (e.g., the Volvo RRV from Smarter Metering Service), with the website's "Support Us" page functioning as the primary fundraising channel. The customer/mission is the residents of Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire; the strategic partner/customer is EEAST, which both activates BHECCS and allows restocking of consumables from NHS stores.

Name

Bedfordshire & Hertfordshire Emergency Critical Care Scheme

Legal name

Bedfordshire & Hertfordshire Emergency Critical Care Scheme

Website

https://bheccs.org.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2021

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

BHECCS is a UK registered charity delivering volunteer-delivered pre-hospital emergency critical care to critically ill and injured patients in Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire, activated by EEAST and funded entirely by public donations.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Pre-Hospital Emergency Medical Services

NAICS

Ambulance Services (62191)

SIC

Services-Misc Health & Allied Services, Nec (8090), Services-Health Services (8000)

akta.pro primary industry

Freestanding Emergency Departments (FSEDs) (HLAFADAB)

Keywords

• Pre-hospital emergency care
• Critical care services
• Emergency medical response
• Paramedic critical care
• Trauma care services

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Infrastructure, Supply Chain, Technology or R&D, Personnel, Others

Revenue model

1. Public Donations: BHECCS is entirely funded by generous donations from the public. No government or NHS funding is received.
2. Business/Corporate Donations: The Volvo RRV was donated by Smarter Metering Service, a business that has funded several vehicles to charity groups across the UK.

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

BHECCS provides volunteer-delivered pre-hospital emergency critical care to patients suffering life-threatening injury or illness in Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire. Its clinicians (Critical Care Paramedics and Doctors) carry advanced drugs and equipment, and perform interventions such as advanced pain relief, pre-hospital sedation, emergency surgical airway, thoracostomy, pre-hospital emergency anaesthesia, thoracotomy, resuscitative caesarean section, and amputation when required. The service is activated by EEAST and provided free of charge to patients.

Product overview

BHECCS is a charity organization providing a single, unified pre-hospital critical care service rather than a multi-product portfolio. The core offering is volunteer-delivered emergency critical care staffed by Critical Care Paramedics and Doctors who respond to the most seriously ill and injured patients across Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire. They operate using a dedicated Volvo Rapid Response Vehicle (RRV) donated by Smarter Metering Service, and through clinicians responding in their own vehicles from home. The service provides advanced medical interventions including emergency surgical airway, thoracostomy, advanced pain relief, and sedation not typically available on standard emergency ambulances. Senior BHECCS Doctors additionally provide pre-hospital emergency anaesthesia, thoracotomy, resuscitative caesarean section, and amputation procedures. The organization supports the East of England Ambulance Service NHS Trust (EEAST) and educates local ambulance colleagues and hospital staff.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Quantifiable outcome

• Free life-saving pre-hospital emergency critical care service for the residents of Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire

Named customers2 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• East of England Ambulance Service NHS Trust (EEAST)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEEAST is the primary NHS partner that activates BHECCS volunteer clinicians for advanced pre-hospital emergency care. EEAST also allows BHECCS to restock consumables (bandages, cannulas etc.) from their stores, which is a significant operational support for the charity.
• Smarter Metering ServicecoreOthersSmarter Metering Service donated the Volvo RRV (Rapid Response Vehicle) to BHECCS. The company has funded several vehicles to charity groups across the UK with the same mission to help people in their local areas.
• BASICS (British Association for Immediate Care)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerBHECCS is affiliated with BASICS as shown by the logo displayed on the website. BASICS is a national organisation supporting doctors and paramedics who provide immediate care in emergencies.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Kent, Surrey & Sussex Air Ambulance: Charity delivering doctor-led pre-hospital emergency medicine across the South East via helicopter and RRV. Comparable clinical scope, NHS ambulance trust activation, and donation-funded operating model.
• Wiltshire Air Ambulance: Charity providing Helicopter Emergency Medical Services across Wiltshire and surrounding areas with a doctor/paramedic team. Comparable pre-hospital critical care charity operating model with NHS trust dispatch integration.
• London's Air Ambulance Charity: UK-leading pre-hospital critical care charity providing advanced trauma and medical interventions (including thoracotomy and REBOA) via doctor-paramedic teams in London. Multiple BHECCS clinicians (Dr Cosmo Scurr, Dr Miles Gandolfi, Joe Steer) are London Air Ambulance alumni, making this both a peer and a talent feeder.
• Magpas Air Ambulance: Charity providing enhanced pre-hospital emergency medicine (doctors and paramedics) by road and air across the East of England. Closest direct peer to BHECCS — same volunteer clinician model, same NHS-style integration, same clinical scope (anaesthesia, thoracotomy, advanced procedures), same donation-funded structure. Several BHECCS doctors (e.g., Dr Dan Ketley) trained with Magpas.
• Great Western Air Ambulance Charity: Charity providing critical care and air ambulance services across the West of England. Similar volunteer and doctor-paramedic operating model delivering advanced pre-hospital interventions with NHS ambulance service dispatch.
• Midlands Air Ambulance Charity: Charity covering six Midlands counties delivering pre-hospital critical care via helicopter and RRV with doctor-paramedic teams. Comparable in scope, funding model, and NHS partnership activation.
• East Anglian Air Ambulance: Pre-hospital emergency medicine charity covering Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Norfolk, and Suffolk. Operates doctor/paramedic teams delivering advanced interventions with charitable funding, frequently overlapping BHECCS's geography and EEAST dispatch footprint.
• Essex & Herts Air Ambulance: Charity providing pre-hospital critical care by helicopter and rapid response vehicle across Essex and Hertfordshire — directly overlapping BHECCS's geographic catchment. Provides advanced clinical interventions via doctor-paramedic teams, donation-funded, and activated by EEAST — directly comparable service model.
• Lincolnshire & Nottinghamshire Air Ambulance: Volunteer doctor-led pre-hospital critical care charity serving the East Midlands, activated by East Midlands Ambulance Service. Highly comparable in structure — charity status, volunteer clinicians, NHS partnership, donation-funded operations.

Others

• BASICS (British Association for Immediate Care): National umbrella organisation supporting volunteer doctors and paramedics delivering immediate pre-hospital care across the UK. BHECCS is an affiliated BASICS scheme; not a direct operational peer but a structural enabler/affiliation that defines the volunteer pre-hospital care community.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/bheccs

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Bedfordshire & Hertfordshire Emergency Critical Care Scheme