Claims of sleeping staff and bullying on ward

Whistle-blowers have described neglect, patient-on-patient assault and staff who bully colleagues and sleep on the job at a troubled mental health ward.

Sources told a BBC investigation that a patient of 25-bed, mixed-gender Hill Crest Ward in Redditch, Worcestershire, suffered a broken jaw during one clash.

They also claimed three nurses were "forced out" amid bullying behaviour.

The NHS trust that runs Hill Crest said it believed changes there were having a positive impact.

Accounts have been corroborated via five independent sources to whom the BBC spoke. They follow reports earlier this year of a fire and an incident in which staff locked themselves in an office when a patient ran around armed with boiling water and sugar.

Additionally, one patient has provided the BBC with images alleged to show the effects of her battering herself out of desperation - without staff intervening.

Sources also described staff being bullied, with one saying a nurse who particularly suffered had her resignation letter read out and mocked by tormentors.

Sources independently complained of the workplace culture, with the BBC aware of explicit images bearing lewd comments about colleagues.

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Source: BBC News, 15 November 2022