WILTSHIRE’S Air Ambulance may have found a new base in the county after a year-long search.

The lease on its hangar and offices at Wiltshire Police Headquarters in Devizes runs out at the end of 2017 and by then the charity hopes to be at a new site near Semington.

The search for a suitable site has identified land at Outmarsh Farm, Semington, south of Hampton Park West Industrial Estate.

Bosses at the charity needed to find a site that would allow helicopter crews to maintain their target of reaching anywhere in the county in 11 minutes. It is also away from major housing development and has good road links.

An air ambulance spokesman said: “Currently our helicopter and crew are based at Wiltshire Police Headquarters in Devizes while our charity team is based at offices that we rent at Porte Marsh Industrial Estate, Calne.

The lease on the hangar runs out on December 31, 2017, and the lease on the offices runs out at the end of January 2018.

“The advantage of having the crew and charity team under one roof means we will be working more efficiently. The benefit of owning our own land would mean we have full control of our future and not subject to renting with the uncertainty that can bring.”

The charity will present its plans for the new base, which will eventually include a helicopter pad, a hangar, offices and a visitor centre, to people living near the proposed site.

It is holding a public consultation today at Trowbridge Rugby Club from 3 to 8pm.

The spokesman said: “It is of the utmost importance to us that we explain our plans to people living and working near our proposed site and to hear their views.

“Charity staff and crew hand delivered letters of invitation to almost 700 properties in Semington and Berryfield.

“We also sent letters to more than 60 stakeholders, including businesses who are adjacent to the proposed site and community representatives in Melksham.”

For more on Wiltshire Air Ambulance, visit www.wiltshireairambulance.co.uk