RIPPLE Parish Council is pushing for the main road through Ryall to be officially called Ryall Road to prevent fatal confusion among emergency services.

The road running through Holly Green and Ryall, between the A4104 and the A38, is known locally as Ryall Road but is officially the B4212.

House numbers are not allotted to an unnamed road, which can cause confusion for delivery vehicles and emergency services.

Parish and Malvern Hills district councillor Roger Sutton has asked district council officers to look into the process of officially giving each house a number.

At a meeting of Ripple Parish Council on Monday (July 7), he said his inquiries followed a recent incident where an ambulance on an emergency call could not find a patient's house.

Chairman Roger Wilding suggested a survey of the parish to canvas opinion.

"If the majority are for it we will propose it to the district council," he said.

Andrew McCausland, technical officer for street name and numbering at MHDC, said changing the name and assigning numbers was not difficult, but required support from residents, as their addresses could change dramatically.

"It's not something we can impose on people unless there's evidence it's causing major problems," he said.

"It's a lot easier to find a property if you have a street name and numbers, but it's been known like that for so long and all the records are in the original address."

Dominic Robertson, deputy director of operations at the Hereford and Worcester Ambulance Service, said he would support any move to make sure all properties had names and numbers.

"We need to find addresses very quickly when people are ill," he said.

Anyone with an opinion on the issue is asked to make their feelings known in writing to Ripple parish clerk Mary Barnett at 2 New Cottages, Clencher's Mill Lane, Eastnor, Ledbury, HR8 1RR.