Families 'failed' by trust meet ahead of inquiry

Families and former patients who say they were "failed" by a health trust are meeting to discuss what they would like to see covered in a public inquiry.

In 2022, an investigation found major failings in the care the Tees, Esk and Wear Valleys Trust provided to three teenagers before their death. Last month, Health Secretary Wes Streeting announced a public inquiry into it.

He said it would "uncover failures in care and look at the concerning number of patient deaths by suicide at the trust over the past 10 years".

Streeting said he wanted the families to play a key role, and later about 50 families and former patients will meet in Middlesbrough to talk about issues they would like answers on.

Christie Harnett and Nadia Sharif, who were both 17, and Emily Moore, who was 18, were all treated at West Lane Hospital in Middlesbrough and all took their own lives within months of each other.

Their families led the campaign for a public inquiry.

Their solicitor Alistair Smith said the pain of their loss "does not go away, but they want this inquiry to make permanent and radical change".

Among those meeting later is Kate, who was a teenager when she was a patient at West Lane Hospital and said she was "haunted" by the things she witnessed and heard.

A critical report described the unit as "chaotic and unsafe" and Kate said her own health rapidly deteriorated while she was there and she self-harmed more regularly.

Read full story

Source: BBC News, 21 January 2026