AN MP has demanded the breaking up of a mental health trust after it was rocked by a fresh series of scandals.

Oxford East MP Andrew Smith said only "radical action" could restore the public's faith in Southern Health NHS Foundation Trust following yet more bad publicity.

Pay packets for trust bosses worth millions of pounds have been called into question and a prominent governor at the trust has reported it to the police over allegations of harassment.

Mr Smith said: "As I have said in Parliament and to the Secretary of State for Health personally, it remains extraordinary that, after all the deaths and independently documented failings of the trust, its chief executive and medical director remain in post.

"After so much has gone wrong, with shocking fatal consequences for some patients, only radical action can restore public confidence.

"The Care Quality Commission, Monitor and the Government should look at breaking the trust up and putting in new management at the top."

The trust has been beset with scandals since July 2013, when Oxford teen Connor Sparrowhawk died after having an epileptic fit in a bath at Southern Health's Slade House unit in Headington. The trust eventually admitted full responsibility three years later.

Last December NHS England's Mazars report stated 722 people had died unexpectedly under Southern Health's care, of which only 272 were investigated.

And a damning Care Quality Commission report in April revealed "serious concerns" for patient safety. Southern Health is also subject to enforcement action by NHS Improvement.

Despite this, chief executive Katrina Percy, chief operating officer Dr Chris Gordon and medical director Lesley Stevens took home almost £1m between them last year – including pension contributions, with Dr Stevens alone receiving in the region of £360,000.

And the gap between the trust's top earners and its average worker has grown, with the ratio of pay increasing from 7.22 in 2013/14 to 7.64 in 2015/16.

Oxford Mail:

Connor Sparrowhawk's mother, Dr Sara Ryan, said: "Their salaries are shocking. I think they are just out of control. It's further evidence of mismanagement.

"As we found out, they have spent £5.3m on leadership development; they are all earning this much money and they're still doing a rubbish job."
In the latest development, one of the trust's governors has gone to the police over allegations of harassment, after himself being investigated by Southern Health.

Oxford Mail:

The trust began 'investigating' public governor Peter Bell, who proposed a vote of no confidence in the leadership in May, in July on the grounds of "intimidating" behaviour and maintaining a "disproportionately high volume of correspondence with the trust which distracts staff time from core business".

But now Mr Bell is meeting police today for an interview after accusing Southern Health of harassing him for trying to force change and voicing his concern.

He said: "I thought asking questions was my job.

"All the public governors are generally of the mind that something needs to happen. The board needs to changed."

Andrew Smith MP added: "This blatant unfairness on staffing and pay policy is further confirmation Southern Health is not fit for purpose. 

"These inequalities have clearly been very demotivating for front line staff. I warned about Southern Health’s staffing practices before they were allowed to take over learning disability services in Oxfordshire.

"Governors like Peter Bell are there to speak up for the public interest in a safe and caring health service. 

"It is shocking but par for the course that he is now coming under such attack from Southern Health for doing just that."

Nicola Blackwood, the MP for Oxford West and Abingdon, also called for "urgent improvements" in co-ordination with NHS Improvement, the body created to oversee foundation trusts.

Department of Health spokeswoman Megan Elliott said: "We expect to see urgent improvements in the care provided by Southern Health Foundation Trust so that patients and their families get the highest quality services. We remain in close discussion on this with NHS Improvement, the regulator responsible for holding Trusts to account for their performance. It is vital that taxpayers’ money is spent appropriately."

Southern Health spokesman Daniel Clark said: "Our senior managers are paid according to national guidelines. When compared to neighbouring trusts of a similar size, our pay is competitive but by no means an outlier. Chief executives and senior managers work under extreme pressure... and are accountable for incredibly complex and demanding pieces of work. We want the best people to ensure we can provide the best care for the communities that we serve.

"Mr Bell is subject to an ongoing internal investigation and as such it would be inappropriate for us to comment any further on the matter at this time."

Southern Health declined to comment on what Mr Smith or Dr Ryan had said.

FORMER EMPLOYEE TELLS OF CARE CONCERNS

AN ex-employee of Southern Health said she would not put her own daughter under its care.

The woman from South East Oxford, who wished to remain anonymous, was a support worker from late 2012 to early 2016 at the trust, visiting people with learning disabilities in Oxford.

She recalled employees taking a pay cut – from about £19,500 per year to a maximum of £17,978 – after Southern Health took over services in Oxfordshire from former providers the Ridgeway Partnership in November 2012. This was followed by a loss of enhancements and a reported exodus of staff.

She said: "There had always been agency staff but never to that extent. We weren't allowed to leave them alone, as they can't hoist people by themselves or give medication. "Sometimes you had to leave wheelchair-bound people in bed all day for safety reasons; it was a nightmare.

"They also brought in long days where people were working from 7.30am to 9.30pm and some then slept over and didn't leave until 7.30am the next morning.

"Southern Health wanted to become too big too fast. But they were relying on people too much. It's like a house of cards; if you put on one too many, they all collapse."

Communication, she added, also proved an issue as only managers had access to its care records system and did not always pass on any changes.
She said: "Because I have been working at Southern Health, I would never trust putting my daughter in one of those homes."

Southern Health spokesman Daniel Clark admitted since Ridgeway was acquired "the executive team has been too stretched to guarantee high quality services everywhere that Southern Health operates. The Trust needs to change the way it delivers services because currently it operates across too broad a spectrum.

"There is no evidence of staff leaving due to the changes. While the use of agency staff is not ideal, ongoing issues associated with recruitment of social care staff across the UK continue to be a problem for all providers in Oxfordshire."

FAMILY TO CONTINUE CELEBRATING VICTIM'S LIFE

Oxford Mail:

CONNOR Sparrowhawk's family are preparing to continue celebrating the life of the 18-year-old known as 'Laughing Boy'.

In the early days of the '#JusticeforLB' campaign, supporters from across the globe crocheted, stitched and decorated more than 200 patches for a special quilt to raise awareness of what had happened, as well as crucial funds for his family's legal fees at the inquest.

It became known as the Justice Quilt and first went on display in late 2014.
Currently back with the family in Headington, the quilt recently returned from a day-long singing spectacular in memory of Connor at the Warwick Arts Centre and will travel to a conference for people with learning disabilities in Spain later this year.

Val Ryan, Connor's grandmother, said: "There's going to be workshops, a concert and a lot of drama and all sorts of things. There should be marvellous photos."

She added the situation with trust governor Peter Bell, who is currently being investigated by Southern Health while he has reported the trust to police for harassment, was "dreadful" and said: "I can't imagine how on Earth the executive directors are still in post.

"There are some nice people working there; I feel so sorry for them. I think it needs government interference."

2015/2016 ANNUAL REPORT

ANALYSIS by Lancaster University researcher Chris Hatton has noted that according to Southern Health’s annual 2015/16 report, overall income has fallen from £353.9m in 2013/14 to £332.8m in 2015/16, with the trust now £5.8m in deficit.

In the past financial year, the trust spent £2.2m on ‘staff exit packages’ for 1,222 staff, compared to £1.4m in 2014/15 on exit packages for 43 staff.

Spending on staff – excluding directors – has dropped from £258.1m in 2014/15 to £236.6m in 2015/16. In the same period, the number of whole-time equivalent staff working for the trust fell by 11 per cent – from 7,282 to 6,468.

But spending on executive directors has actually increased from £1m in 2013/14 to £1.5m in 2015/16, an increase of 48 per cent in two years.

Oxford Mail: Chief executive of Southern Health NHS FoundationTrust Katrina Percy at the launch of The Kintampo Project, St Mary's Stadium. The Kintampo Trust aims to improve mental health in Ghana         Tuesday 17th January 2012 (49311283)

Chief executive Katrina Percy was on a salary of £190,000 with up to £55,000 in pension contributions.

Oxford Mail:

Chief operating officer Dr Chris Gordon was on £182,000 with pension contributions of £175-£177,500.

Oxford Mail:

Medical director Lesley Stevens up to £145,000 with up to £225,000 in pension contributions.

Vacancies currently constitute 8.5 per cent of the workforce and the rolling average of sickness absence is 4.8 per cent.