OXFORDSHIRE’S ambulance service has been recognised for its campaign to put an end to hoax calls.

The ‘999 Misuse Costs Lives’ campaign was launched in January after South Central Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust received 1,235 hoax calls in 2011. Its campaign featured a video on YouTube called 999 South Central – Misuse Costs Lives which has had 70,000 views so far.

A Twitter account – @SCAS999 – has also been set up.

Now the trust has been given a silver award in the consumer film category and a bronze award in the consumer mixed media category at the IPA Best of Health Awards.

Gillian Hodgetts, of South Central Ambulance Service, said: “Winning both silver and bronze in these prestigious awards is a huge achievement.

“These awards are testament to the enthusiasm that our staff had for wanting to produce an impactful campaign.”

It costs about £257 for the ambulance service to attend an incident, against a background of increasing demand for the service.