News | Hospital violence


downsmail.co.uk 30 police calls tomental hospital


A HOSPITAL which treats mentally ill criminals from all over the country was subject to 29 police reports for violent assaults in a 26-day period, according to data seen byDownsMail. Kent Police followed up violent


conduct andcriminaldamage inci- dents on 11days fromApril 2-28 at the privateCygnetHospital, based at the Kent Medical Campus in Maidstone. OnApril 6, therewere five incidents.On three other days - April 4, 12 and 14 - there were four. Our revelations about patient on


patient abusewill fuel further con- cerns about two schools being built directly next door to the hospital. We obtained the troubling fig-


ures under Freedom of Informa- tion (FoI) legislation after Cygnet refused to provide uswith any de- tails of the frequency or nature of the disturbances at its facility. Apart fromone criminaldamage


allegation, 29 others relate to actual bodily harmor assaultwithout in- jury. And aside from three police cautions, no further action was taken in any of the cases. Bearsted parish and borough


councillor Denis Spooner said: “I have always disputed siting the schools next to amental hospital to treat criminals. And I was never happy about a mental hospital being sited so close to the local communities, but I accepted it as assurances were given that it would be safe. These figures are very, veryworrying. “It is not just the high volume of


reports of criminal activity but the nature of it –most are for assault of


Good overall


THE Cygnet Hospital was rated good overall by theCQCbecause the facility is safe, clean and ade- quately staffed. Ward teams had access to spe-


cialists to meet patients’ needs and staff received adequate train- ing and appraisal. The service is well-led by sen-


iormanagers and“the governance processes ensured thatmostward procedures ran smoothly”. AspokesmantoldDownsMail:


“We take seriously the one area which inspectors said requires improvement and, as theCQCre- port notes,we have already taken immediate action to address this. “The action included a staff


briefing on communicating with patients, as well as changes to longer-termplans tomake build- ing improvements such as in- stalling CCTV monitors in the seclusion suite.”


8 Maidstone September 2019 OUTCOMES


ACCORDINGto police data, there were six types of outcomes to the 30incidentsatCygnet.Theywere: Caution Suspect too ill to prosecute  Key witness dead or too ill to give evidence Victimunable to IDoffender  Evidential differences prevents prosecution  Victim does not support police action


one sort or another.” Therewill be one primary and a


special needs school, being built by the Department for Education, on the former Popes Field nature re- serve and run by the LeighAcade- mies’ Trust. Ian Stuart, a retired banker fromWeavering, pictured,


said a nearly-complete stepdown recuperation medical facility also at theKMCsitewouldincrease the number of vulnerable people next door to themental hospital. Alan Storey,who lives opposite


the schools development said he was “not surprised” by our revela- tions.The rise inviolence atCygnet promptedanNHSWestKentClin- ical Commissioning Group-led in- quiry over the “disproportionate” number of patient on patient as- saults in the 65-bedhospital’smale psychiatric intensive care unit. Safeguarding alerts had been raised there. After the multi-agency investi-


gation, an action planwas agreed. Despite several attempts to ob-


tain details of the assaults, the ac- tion plan and a request to meet management by Downs Mail, Cygnet refused to co-operate.


Vicar’s fears of violence


THE vicar of Bearsted, Canon John Corbyn, said he is "dis- tressed and worried" by DownsMail’s revelations. He said: “The patients or


clients, whether they are vic- tims or suspects inthese cases, are vulnerable people who may be further traumatised and it raises questions about howthey are beingmanaged. “Of course, I do not know


how this might compare to other similar facilities, but I haveworked in a prison and I don't spent my days sipping tea with dowagers, so I am concerned, distressed and worried that this place is not a safe environment.”


Safety ‘requires improvement’


CYGNET HospitalMaidstone has received troubling criticism of its safety record in a Care Quality Commission (CQC) report. TheCQCsaid the facility,which


treats mentally ill criminals at Weavering, “requires improve- ment” on the core pre-inspection question of: “Is it safe?” Inspectors found there had been


five “serious incidents” at the 65- bedhospital, including one involv- ing aweapon and an escape. The report gives theGidds Pond


Way facility an overall good rating in key areas of effectiveness, care, responsiveness and leadership. It relates to an inspection carried


out onMarch 19 and 20, just days before a “disproportionate” num- ber ofpatient onpatient assaults on a male psychiatric intensive care unit (PICU) in themonth ofApril,


which prompted an official in- quiry. At the conclusion of the recent


NHS-led multi-agency investiga- tion, we asked Cygnet to provide details of the nature andfrequency of the incidents. The private hospi- tal'smanagement refused. Cygnet also declined to co-oper-


ate with a request we submitted under Freedomof Information leg- islation. The findings tell how on


“Bearstead”ward, patients are de- tained under the Mental Health Act, referred fromthe prison serv- ice or criminal justice system, often from as far away as Cumbria and Birmingham. The report adds: “Staffwe spoke


with on Bearstead ward spoke of the difficulties of moving patients back to their local areas.”


But in the crucial area of safety,


the inspectors seemedto flagupis- sues within the building which would later erupt into violence with involvement by Kent Police. In the section on the reporting of


incidents, the inspectors wrote: “Types of incidents recorded in- cluded physical aggression from patient to patient or patient to staff and property damage.” Under safeguarding, the inspec-


tors said: “Staff on Bearsteadward told us there were multiple inci- dents of patient on patient as- sault/alleged assault, which were reportedto the safeguarding team." But those staff were criticised as


they did not “always assess or manage risks to patients well”, meaning that “incidentswere con- tinuing to take place which could have been potentially prevented".


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