More than 10,000 people were sent to A&E in the West Midlands by the NHS 111 helpline in December.

The increase in both A&E referrals and the number of patients admitted to hospital across England shows the strain the NHS is under, the healthcare research group the Nuffield Trust says.

NHS England data shows the West Midlands 111 line recommended 11,063 A&E visits in December 2019, accounting for 8.7% of the calls assessed at the centre.

NHS 111 is a 24-hour helpline for patients seeking non-urgent medical help, which replaced NHS Direct and some GP out-of-hours services in 2014.

Callers answer questions about their symptoms, asked by an adviser who can refer them to appropriate services for their condition.

There was no previous data for the West Midlands, but across England, more than 120,000 callers to the 111 helpline were referred to A&E in December – more than in any other month since records began in 2010.