Cygnet Hospital Wyke placed in special measures

The hospital has been rated inadequate by inspectors

An independent mental health hospital has been rated inadequate by inspectors and placed in special measures.

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) twice visited Cygnet Hospital Wyke, in Bradford, in June after "concerns raised by anonymous whistleblowing".

It found the facility to be unsafe, with seven serious incidents including the deaths of two patients last year.

The hospital said it had "invested significantly" to improve the service since the inspections.

In a report, the CQC said care provided by staff was "not always kind and respectful", records were not being kept, incidents were not being reported and there was "routine disregard of standard operating and safety procedures".

Deputy Chief Inspector of Hospitals Dr Paul Lelliott said the regulator was "considering further enforcement action" to protect patients.

The 51-bed hospital, which has three wards, was fined £1,250 after inspectors were alerted to a number of serious incidents last year, the report said.

Care 'deteriorated further'

However, there have been a further six serious incidents at the facility since 20 May, according to the report.

Dr Lelliott said: "We have found the standard of care provided at Cygnet Hospital Wyke to have deteriorated further."

Inspectors will "continue to closely monitor the hospital with support from our partner agencies, to ensure people are safe" and will take action "when it is appropriate to do so", he added.

A hospital spokesman said the organisation was "deeply committed to providing the very best care" but had fallen "short of the standards we expect".

"Since the inspections in June we have invested significantly in improving the service.

"We have implemented an intense improvement programme which has been shared with the CQC and they have recognised progress is being made."

Following inspections in June, the CQC applied conditions preventing the service from accepting new patients without written agreement.

The hospital said the CQC had now agreed to vary those conditions so it could accept referrals to the male mental health acute ward, which will reopen on 13 August.