Cornwall care home abuse 'not investigated'

A review has questioned why three years of evidence of neglect and abuse only came to light after a BBC Panorama investigation

Abuse in Cornwall care homes was not properly investigated until after a BBC investigation, a review has found.

The Morleigh Group operated seven homes in the county until closing in 2016 after undercover filming by BBC Panorama at one home revealed abuse.

An official review found there had been hundreds of reports of concerns since 2013.

These included physical abuse, people being left "soaked in their own urine" and a lack of food and heating.

The Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Safeguarding Adults Board review highlighted the failings and missed opportunities to address the problems.

Its report specifically questioned why it took a BBC programme to "bring about change" despite the "wealth of evidence" already available.

'Residents at risk'

The homes included Alexandra House, Clinton House, Collamere, Elmsleigh and St Theresa's, along with the Brake Manor and Tregertha Court residential homes.

All are either now run by new businesses or closed.

Nearly 400 incidents of safeguarding concerns or alerts were raised, including 80 whistleblower reports about issues which "put residents at risk".

The review also revealed 44 Care Quality Commission (CQC) inspections which indentified problems and 130 reports to police.

Incidents reported included:

• Abuse against residents, with one worker being found guilty of assault

• People "soaked" in their own urine

• Relatives' concerns about neglect

• Not enough food, no hot water and no heating

• Claims "dozens" shared a single bathroom

Fifteen recommendations have been accepted by Cornwall Council and its Safeguarding Adults Board after the review highlighted agencies not sharing information.

They included a call for a clear whistle blowing process for all staff, residents, families and professionals to ensure information was shared across all agencies.

A CQC spokeswoman said "no one should ever have to endure" the poor care experienced by residents at the Morleigh Group's care homes.

It said its "inspection methodology has tightened further".

Safeguarding board chairwoman Fiona Field apologised to victims and said improvements were being made.

They included a safeguarding triage team as part of a "single front door" to raise alerts, and a weekly information-sharing meeting so all partners were "aware of any risks", she said.