The site already operates as the comprehensive stroke centre for the whole of Lancashire and South Cumbria. However, up until September 2023, it was available in Lancashire and South Cumbria only on weekdays and during daytime hours. Royal Preston HospitalIt has since been extended further until 10pm, with the last patient being accepted at 8pm, but the 24/7 ambition has remained elusive until now. A coroner last year said the lack of an out-of-hours thrombectomy service in Lancashire and South Cumbria posed a life-threatening risk to patients. Phil Woodford, a stroke survivor and former NHS director, became a campaigner for 24/7 thrombectomy availability in Lancashire and South Cumbria after he was denied the procedure in 2016.