Father's search for answers over teenager's hospital death

Rowan Thompson died in a unit at Prestwich Hospital

A father whose child died at a mental health hospital where a culture of abuse was uncovered has told of his hopes for answers from an inquest.

Rowan Thompson, 18, was one of three people who died over a nine-month period at Prestwich Hospital in Greater Manchester.

The BBC's Panorama found a "toxic culture" of "bullying" at another unit to where Rowan was being treated.

Marc Thompson said he needed "an answer to the question how my child died".

Gill Green, chief nurse at Greater Manchester Mental Health NHS Trust, expressed her "heartfelt condolences to Rowan's family, friends and all who have been affected by this tragedy".

"We are fully cooperating with the inquest process," she added.

Rowan, who identified as non-binary, had been sectioned at the hospital while on remand awaiting trial accused of murdering their mother Joanna Thompson, 50, in July 2019.

She was stabbed more than 100 times at her home in Hambledon, Hampshire.

Rowan admitted manslaughter but died just days before the murder trial, which was due to begin in October 2020.

Mr Thompson said he was desperate for answers into Rowan's death

"While he was in the unit he had been diagnosed as being autistic which all of a sudden made a lot of the things that he would do explainable," said Mr Thompson.

"To the day he died, Rowan said he couldn't remember what happened and I obviously believe that.

"Although his death was tragic, even worse was the fact that it removed any potential closure for siblings, family over the death of his mother."

Last month, Panorama published footage of staff which had been filmed by an undercover reporter at a separate unit - Edenfield Centre - which is in the same hospital where Rowan was being treated.

"When I saw that programme - where I had felt like I had given the benefit of the doubt as we've done through disclosure and so on - that all vanished," he said.

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He said he now wanted answers from the hospital about Rowan's medical regime.

"We got told that basically they just found him collapsed in his room. They had done CPR and that was it.

"That's what we knew. That's what we were told."

He added: "Having an answer and having a reason to be able to say 'my child died because'. It means the world".

The inquest will resume on Monday.