CEO: TV show sparked ‘overwhelming’ regulator scrutiny

An “overwhelming” number of regulators were involved with a trust after an undercover documentary exposed care failings, its chief executive has said.

Channel 4 aired hidden camera footage from Essex Partnership University Foundation Trust mental health inpatient wards in 2022. This revealed staff sleeping on duty and concerns over use of restraints.

Trust CEO Paul Scott said on Thursday: “Understandably, those with regulatory responsibilities were very interested in the Dispatches programme and our response to it. But the sheer volume of people who wanted some assurance that we were taking seriously and making improvements [was] overwhelming.”

He estimated he had attended around 19 boards or equivalent structures to provide assurance from different angles. “Nineteen regulators over one organisation felt overwhelming.”

Mr Scott made the comments during his evidence to the Lampard Inquiry, which is looking into thousands of mental health patient deaths in Essex between 2000 and 2023. The probe is expected to report its findings before the end of 2027.

In his written submission, Mr Scott had mentioned the “complexity of the nature and oversight of regulation” facing trusts from multiple parties within health and social care.

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Source: HSJ, 16 May 2025