THE vital role played by the ambulance service will be highlighted at a roadshow next week.

Ambulances, together with a full range of life-saving equipment, will be on display at Tennant's Auctioneers, in Leyburn, on Thursday, from 10am to 4pm.

Yorkshire Air Ambulance and the First Responders will also be in attendance.

Jayne Barnes, chief executive of Tees, East and North Yorkshire Ambulance Service NHS Trust, said the purpose of the event was to show the public the vast range of resources available, and demonstrate how the service used the latest technology to work more efficiently.

She said: "This is an open invitation, and we hope as many people as possible will come along.

"We look forward to providing a lot of answers to their questions."

Staff will also be on hand to explain how a 999 call is dealt with, from the initial telephone call to the arrival of an ambulance.

The service recently introduced new software, which can analyse resources available, against predicted activity.

It suggests where vehicles should be positioned, and latest results show that jobs are coming in soon after a vehicle arrives at its standby point.