Dead bodies exposed to view from public footpath

A body being prepared for release in a hospital mortuary was visible from a publicly accessible footpath through a fire exit door propped open in hot weather, inspectors have found.

The Human Tissue Authority said the mortuary office fire exit door at Worthing Hospital was “frequently opened for ventilation during periods of hot weather” and, when propped, gave “unrestricted access to the body store”. The camera covering it was not working, though the trust provided evidence on this before the report was published.

Inspectors could also see into the body store from the same footpath through the funeral directors’ entrance, where the doors were slow to close and had been left substantially open after a release.

The inspection, on 7 and 8 July, came less than three weeks after NHS England ordered every trust to review mortuary security, CCTV, estates, and staffing following “shocking” findings at Nottingham University Hospitals Trust.

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Source: HSJ, 14 September 2026