High-security hospital 'still needs to improve'
Rampton Hospital, run by Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust (NHFT) has been rated "requires improvement" by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) following an unannounced inspection in March.
It was rated "inadequate" in January 2024 with the NHS trust under close scrutiny at the time over its care of Valdo Calocane, who carried out the Nottingham attacks in June 2023.
While the CQC found some "clear improvements" had been made at the hospital, it said the trust had work to do "to address staff shortages and support staff".
Rampton provides services to people who are detained under the Mental Health Act 1983 and are classified as having a learning disability, mental illness or psychopathic disorder.
The latest CQC visit of the site follows a series of inspections that began in June last year as part of a 12-month inspection programme the watchdog has carried out at the wider trust.
This was prompted by a special review into NHFT for which the final report was published in August last year.
During the latest inspection, staff reported incidents where the hospital wards were "not meting safe staffing levels" with therapies and activities "frequently cancelled" due to staffing shortages.
Managers told inspectors the wards "hardly ever" had the right number, experience and gender of staff to keep patients and staff safe.
Between 1 March 2024 and 27 February 2025 staff submitted 777 incident forms where the reasons stated were "clinically unsafe staffing", the report said.
Sometimes staff were working alone at night, leaving them unable to take breaks and some unhappy they were regularly moved from their ward to support others.
Managers told inspectors lone working left staff feeling "anxious, isolated and unsafe".
In the report, released on Friday, the CQC said it had found four breaches of regulation during its latest inspection, related to safe care, safeguarding, privacy and dignity, premises and equipment and safe staffing.
The watchdog said it had asked the trust to submit a plan showing what action it was taking to address the concerns but added it had provided assurances around staffing concerns.
Leaders at the trust showed it had measures in place to to minimise lone working and that the service was in the middle of a large recruitment drive.
The CQC added staff at Rampton respected people's privacy and dignity, were responsive to people's needs, provided help, emotional advice and advice when they needed it and worked well with partner organisations.
Greg Rielly, CQC deputy director of operations in the Midlands, said: "We have told leaders at Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust where urgent improvements are needed.
"The service needs to build on the positive areas in our report and focus on making the service safer for people."
In April, the BBC revealed the trust announced plans to withdraw from a contract to provide healthcare to prison inmates at seven jails across the East Midlands and an immigration centre.
Dr Susan Elcock, executive medical director and deputy chief executive of Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, said the service was pleased the CQC reflected on improvements it had made.
She added: "We welcome inspections as they are an important way to understand how we are doing and highlight areas where we can do better.
"Where the CQC told us we needed to take urgent action, we immediately took steps to address the issues raised.
"The CQC noted among the improvements those relating to physical health support and described care plans as personalised and truly reflecting patients' needs.
"Whilst we recognise we still have a way to go, I would like to thank colleagues for their work to date.
"We are absolutely committed to making further improvements to ensure our services consistently provide excellent, safe care and will continue working closely with the CQC, our colleagues, our patients and their families to achieve this."
Follow BBC Nottingham on Facebook, on X, or on Instagram. Send your story ideas to eastmidsnews@bbc.co.uk or via WhatsApp on 0808 100 2210.
Troubled NHS trust to quit prison health contract
Secure hospital is improving, report says
Inspectors take action against psychiatric hospital
Care Quality Commission (CQC)
Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
13 hours ago
- Yahoo
Former nurse loses legal challenge over private gender clinic
A former nurse has lost her High Court challenge against the registration of England's first private gender clinic for teenagers. Susan Evans, and a mother who asked not to be named, had argued that the health regulator, the Care Quality Commission (CQC) had "acted irrationally" in registering the Gender Plus Hormone Clinic. On Thursday, Mrs Justice Eady said she was satisfied the steps taken by the CQC were "rationally focused" and it had "patient safety foremost in mind" when it assessed the clinic. The clinic, which is rated "outstanding", said the ruling "demonstrates the diligence and integrity" of its work. Ms Evans said she was "extremely disappointed". The Gender Plus Hormone Clinic is believed to be the only private organisation in England which is registered to treat 16- and 17-year-olds with hormones for gender incongruence, defined as a mismatch between their biological sex and their gender identity. Cross-sex hormones, such as oestrogen or testosterone, are given to people who identify as a different gender to their biological sex. The medication helps someone who is transitioning to develop characteristics associated with their preferred gender. For instance, it would help a trans man, a biological female who identifies as a man, develop a deeper voice and facial hair. NHS guidance on the prescription of the hormones to young people was updated following the publication of the Cass Review last year. The review stressed the need for "extreme caution" when using hormones in the treatment of 16- to 17-year-olds. What does trans mean and what is the Cass review? The two women alleged that when the CQC inspected and registered the Gender Plus clinic it did not take this into account NHS guidance says all young people, who are recommended for hormone interventions, must have the decision reviewed and endorsed by a national multi-disciplinary team that can consider all aspects of their care. Gender Plus Hormone Clinic, which was set up by Dr Aidan Kelly and is led by nurse consultant Paul Carruthers, had told the court it follows the NHS guidance and had set up its own multi-disciplinary team. Its procedures were reviewed by the CQC inspectors. In the ruling, Mrs Justice Eady said: "I am satisfied the steps taken by the CQC were rationally focused on scrutinising the actual process by which the clinic provided the service in issue. I duly reject this objection. "What is, moreover, clearly apparent from the CQC's evidence is the detailed scrutiny that was undertaken in order to be able to assess clinic's compliance with the regulatory requirements. "It is apparent that this was an assessment that drilled down to the detail of the service provided... with patient safety foremost in mind." She said the question whether the CQC had adequately considered "the particular, and changing, approach adopted by the NHS", was important. But she concluded the criticisms of the clinic were about the internal structure of the organisation and "focused on issues of form rather than substance". Speaking after the judgment, Ms Evans said: "I am extremely disappointed at the outcome of this judicial review." The unnamed mother added: "To say I am disappointed is an understatement." The NHS has opened three specialist children's gender clinics and has plans for a further five, covering the seven NHS regions in England, by the end of 2026. It is understood the NHS multi-disciplinary team has not yet received any recommendations for hormone treatment for 16- and 17-year-olds since the Cass Review. The ruling means Gender Plus can continue to deliver services from its clinics in London, Birmingham and Leeds. Responding to the court ruling, Gender Plus Hormone Clinic said: "This Judicial Review further demonstrates the diligence and integrity of our work. "We operate according to the highest standards, always putting patient safety and wellbeing at the heart of every decision. We couldn't have hoped for a better outcome." A Care Quality Commission spokesperson said: "We are pleased that today's ruling recognises CQC's regulatory expertise. "It also supports the systems and processes at CQC that put the needs of people using services at their heart and help to ensure that people receive care and treatment in a safe way." Private youth gender clinic approved by regulator Watchdog 'acted irrationally' over gender clinic, court told
Yahoo
7 days ago
- Yahoo
CQC left 'deeply concerned' after home inspection
A care home has been rated as inadequate after a watchdog said people were not always safe or treated with dignity. St Margarets Care Home in Peterborough provides support for people living with dementia over 65. The Care Quality Commission (CQC) conducted an unannounced inspection in April. The CQC found that the staff referred to residents as children while speaking to inspectors and the report said "this was not dignified". Stuart Dunn, CQC deputy director of operations in the East of England, said: "When we inspected St Margarets, we were deeply concerned to find people's care wasn't always safe, dignified, or centred on their needs." Inspectors also found that there was one working shower which was being used by 15 people. There were two baths but staff said the lifting equipment in one bathroom was not working, while the other bath did not have lifting equipment at all and was not used. People who needed a soft diet were not provided with "dignified support" and all food items were mixed and served in a bowl. "This did not look appetising," the report said. "This did not demonstrate a compassionate or dignified approach to care as people were not able to taste nor distinguish between individual foods," continued the report. However, people living there and their family members who visited said they were happy with the food provided at the care home. One resident said: "The food is good, there's usually something I like". Another person told inspectors: "We get a choice of two mains, if I don't like either there are alternatives." People living at the care home used to enjoy writing, poetry and colouring. However, inspectors said they did not see people taking part in these activities over the four times they visited in April. "People sat for long periods in the lounges, some people ate their meals in the same chairs and most only moved when using the bathroom," the report said. Hygiene concerns had also been raised after inspectors saw one staff member complete medicines administration for people while wearing the same pair of disposable gloves. The report said the individual did not wash their hands which had placed people at risk of cross infection. Shabina Qayyum, Labour councillor and cabinet member for adults and health at Peterborough City Council, said: "We have paused the placement of local authority residents to the home and have advised the provider not to take on additional residents. "We are working with the provider to fix the issues identified by the CQC. We are confident that the issues can be remedied within the allocated time frame." She added that residents and their families will be given the opportunity to confirm whether they wish to stay at the care home or if they want support to move somewhere else. Follow Peterborough news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X. More on this story Signs of progress at trust despite CQC downgrade Emergency care at NHS trust 'requires improvement' Council asked to back one person's £10m care plan Related internet links Care Quality Commision
Yahoo
23-07-2025
- Yahoo
GP surgery rated outstanding by inspectors
A GP practice in Hull has been praised by health inspectors for "embracing new technology" and providing "the best possible care". The Laurbel Surgery, in Bilton, Hull, has been rated as "outstanding" by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) following an inspection in June. The report said the surgery had "continuously" met the 95% World Health Organisation target for childhood immunisations and "made it easy for people to access appointments". The surgery, which provides services to around 3,600 people, thanked staff for their "exceptional care" and said it was pleased with the report. Susan Moody, practice manager, said: "The CQC report reflects the high quality of patient centred commitment of the entire team in providing good quality patient care." After a survey of patients, the CQC found 89% of people found it easy to contact the practice by phone, 95% found it easy to contact through the website and 92% using the NHS app. 'Impressive' Inspectors also found the practice "understood and met people's personal, cultural, social, religious and equality characteristics". Alan Stephenson, CQC deputy director of operations in South and East Yorkshire, said the surgery "embraced learning and innovation to provide the best possible care to people". He said: "It was impressive to see how many residents they had encouraged to take up cervical cancer screenings and childhood immunisations, which was recognised by the Humber and North Yorkshire Integrated Care Board." CQC said the survey also found that 95% of people who use the surgery felt their needs were met during their last appointment, which was higher than the national average of 90%. "Other practices should look to Laurbel Surgery and this report as an example of good care and to see what they could learn," Mr Stephenson added. Listen to highlights from Hull and East Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, watch the latest episode of Look North or tell us about a story you think we should be covering here. Download the BBC News app from the App Store for iPhone and iPad or Google Play for Android devices Related internet stories New technology to help in brain tumour surgery New £48m wound research centre to open Care home placed in special measures Related internet links Care Quality Commission
