Lauren Bridges occupational therapist expressed concerns, inquest told

Lauren Bridges was "left alone, far from home with no treatment", her mother said

Concerns a 20-year-old mental health patient was "trapped in a cycle" were raised before her death, an inquest heard.

Lauren Bridges, from Bournemouth, died while being treated at the privately-run Priory Cheadle Royal, near Stockport, in February 2022.

Occupational therapist Kira Harvey said being moved 250 miles (400 km) from home left Lauren "deeply distressed".

She carried out multiple visits to Lauren on behalf of Dorset CCG.

Lauren was a patient at the Priory in Dorking when she first met with Ms Harvey in July 2021.

Ms Harvey told Stockport Coroner's Court she raised concerns to Dorset CCG about the hospital staff's knowledge of autism, which Lauren had previously been diagnosed with.

Lauren Bridges, 20, died at the Priory Hospital Cheadle Royal four weeks before Beth Matthews

From 2018 to 2022 Lauren was treated in a series of different hospitals, including a number of facilities "out of area" and away from her home in Bournemouth.

Three days after her first meeting with Ms Harvey, Lauren was transferred to the Cheadle Royal.

The move meant the Bridges family faced an estimated six-hour round trip to see her, which Lindsey Bridges said left her daughter "distressed and traumatised".

Ms Harvey continued to conduct out of area visits to Lauren after the move.

She told the court Lauren's condition seemed to have improved after a visit in September 2021, as her family had been told she could be transferred to a rehabilitation unit.

Ms Harvey said: "She'd become hopeful. My recollection was despite the challenges of the environment, she was positive in general."

Lauren Bridges with her grandparents William and Elizabeth Bridges

However, in October Ms Harvey said Lauren was "getting deeply distressed being so far away from home".

She recalled an email from Mrs Bridges which read: "I've had Lauren on the phone in a complete mess, crying because nobody will sit with her, nobody will wash her hair and nobody has time for her."

Ms Harvey went to visit Lauren again in November and felt she was "very unhappy".

She said: "She was wanting to be closer to her family and was distressed that there didn't seem to be any progress since my last visit about her being able to move.

"She described she had incidents more because of how she was feeling and recognised that was a barrier to her leaving."

The 20-year-old begged to be let out of hospital two days before she died

The court heard Ms Harvey emailed her superiors at Dorset CCG expressing concerns.

Her email said: "The ongoing stresses of the environment and experiencing fear of other unwell clients is unfortunately making her less able to seem ready to leave, add to this the ongoing stress of being so far from home.

"I found her to be in a very much worse state of mind than eight weeks ago and I fear there is a risk she will be trapped in a cycle without a move."

The court heard there was a delay in Lauren's move by Dorset CCG due to a lack of beds on rehabilitation wards.

The inquest, which is expected to run for four weeks, continues.