Norwich NHS walk-in centre firm hired paedophile doctor

Dr Robert Varnam said he downloaded more than 200 indecent images of children after "working very long hours"

A firm that ran a NHS walk-in centre hired a top doctor charged with child sex offences and continued to use his services after his conviction.

In May, Dr Robert Varnam admitted making more than 200 indecent images of children.

He continued working for One Norwich Practices, providing "organisational advice", until mid-July.

Former chair Sarah Ambrose said he "deliberately misled the organisation" but had not worked with patients.

She said she only learned of his conviction last month and would not have hired him had she known he was facing charges.

The walk-in centre is now run by a different organisation, North Norfolk Primary Care.

Category A images

Varnam was one of Britain's most senior doctors when he was arrested in 2020, practising as a GP in Manchester and in charge of improving GP performance at NHS England.

He had been found with more than 200 indecent images of children, mostly aged between eight and 12.

Two were of Category A, the most serious.

He left the NHS the following year, going into business as an "improvement and leadership coach".

One Norwich Practices, which ran the NHS walk-in centre in the city's Rouen Road, hired Varnam in April 2023 to advise on how it could improve.

Shortly afterwards, on 4 May, he pleaded guilty at Manchester Magistrates' Court to making indecent images.

However, he continued working for One Norwich Practices until mid-July.

The firm has since collapsed due to serious financial problems.

Norwich's NHS walk-in centre is now under new management, following the collapse of One Norwich Practices

In July, Varnam was sentenced to a two-year community order, a rehabilitation activity requirement and 150 hours' unpaid work.

He was also placed on the sex offenders register and had a five-year sexual harm prevention order imposed.

Varnam said he had downloaded the images while "working very long hours... and neglecting self-care".

In January, a tribunal ruled he should be "erased" from the medical register.

'Private and personal'

The BBC discovered that concerns were raised that Varnam had been suspended from practising medicine shortly after he began working for One Norwich Practices.

In July, Mrs Ambrose wrote to GPs and practice managers to say she understood he had been investigated by the General Medical Council (GMC).

In the email, seen by the BBC, she said he had "shared the issues openly and honestly" and that the matter was "private and personal" to him.

She said Varnam had been appointed "to provide organisational advice" and had not been involved in clinical services.

However, she said she understood Varnam had been suspended from the medical register and his work with One Norwich Practices had "effectively ended".

She added that "notwithstanding the concerns raised", his work had been "highly valued and appreciated".

Varnam was working as a GP at The Robert Darbishire Practice in Rusholme, Manchester, at the time of his arrest

When approached by the BBC, Mrs Ambrose said she did not find out about Varnam's conviction until January this year.

She said Varnam had told her his suspension was due to "a serious and significant health issue".

However, she admitted she did not contact the GMC to check if this was true as his appointment did not require him to be registered.

"At the time of his engagement, we were not aware of the charges that had been made against him. It would have been totally inappropriate to engage him if this information had been available to us at the time," she said.

"Dr Varnam knowingly and deliberately misled the organisation."

Mrs Ambrose added that "at no time during his short tenure was he involved in providing medical services to patients".

NHS Norfolk and Waveney Integrated Care Board, which commissioned One Norwich Practices to run services, also said Varnam had not carried out any clinical work.

Lucy Galvin said there were "serious questions to answer"

Green councillors on Norwich City Council have previously called for an investigation into the firm's collapse.

Group leader Lucy Galvin said it was "highly alarming" that Varnam had been hired as an adviser.

"The directors have serious questions to answer, including why they chose to ignore the investigations into Robert Varnam and instead employed him to provide 'guidance and expert advice', despite staff concerns," she said.

Varnam has been contacted for comment.