0:00:04 > 0:00:05Tonight on Panorama,
0:00:05 > 0:00:09we reveal the shocking rise of nearly 50%
0:00:09 > 0:00:12in unexpected deaths of mental health patients...
0:00:12 > 0:00:16I literally am sitting on the chair that my son died in.
0:00:17 > 0:00:21..and how, despite five years of Government promises...
0:00:21 > 0:00:23If you suffer from mental health problems,
0:00:23 > 0:00:26there's not enough help to hand.
0:00:26 > 0:00:29I believe we can lead a revolution in mental health treatment
0:00:29 > 0:00:30in Britain.
0:00:30 > 0:00:33..funding for NHS mental health trusts has in fact
0:00:33 > 0:00:37dropped by £150 million...
0:00:37 > 0:00:41What is tragic is that it's the time when we have been promised
0:00:41 > 0:00:43increased funding and there is
0:00:43 > 0:00:47no doubt that this is not being seen on the ground.
0:00:47 > 0:00:51..and we investigate the human cost at what's been England's
0:00:51 > 0:00:53worst-performing mental health trust.
0:00:53 > 0:00:58Can you imagine waking up every day and almost tossing a coin to go
0:00:58 > 0:01:01upstairs to see whether your own flesh and blood is still alive?
0:01:15 > 0:01:18On the 14th of November, Sheila Preston's
0:01:18 > 0:01:22son Leo was found dead following a suspected accidental overdose.
0:01:25 > 0:01:30I met her on her first visit to his flat just four days later.
0:01:33 > 0:01:35This is Leo.
0:01:35 > 0:01:37This is Leo here.
0:01:37 > 0:01:42He was probably 12 years old there.
0:01:42 > 0:01:48And he was the most beautiful, kind, loving son.
0:01:48 > 0:01:49And I was proud of him.
0:01:52 > 0:01:56- SHE SIGHS - And he should still be here
0:01:56 > 0:01:58in this flat today.
0:02:00 > 0:02:04I wanted to save him.
0:02:04 > 0:02:07- Look at this. - SHE SOBS
0:02:10 > 0:02:13The 39-year-old had been treated for schizophrenia
0:02:13 > 0:02:15for the last two decades.
0:02:15 > 0:02:17Look at all this.
0:02:17 > 0:02:19Sophie, look at that. Look.
0:02:19 > 0:02:21Look at that.
0:02:21 > 0:02:23Would you want to cook on that?
0:02:25 > 0:02:26Leo had been a patient
0:02:26 > 0:02:29of the Norfolk and Suffolk Foundation Trust,
0:02:29 > 0:02:33the only mental health trust to be placed in special measures
0:02:33 > 0:02:35in the history of the NHS.
0:02:37 > 0:02:38I begged.
0:02:38 > 0:02:42I begged the trust to help him
0:02:42 > 0:02:49but they thought he was living well, he was, you know, he was managing.
0:02:49 > 0:02:51But I knew that he wasn't.
0:02:51 > 0:02:55I knew that he would just get iller and iller and iller.
0:02:55 > 0:02:57And he died.
0:02:57 > 0:03:02And when they came to tell me, I was not surprised.
0:03:02 > 0:03:03I was expecting it.
0:03:06 > 0:03:10The NHS produces very little national data about
0:03:10 > 0:03:13the performance of our mental health services.
0:03:13 > 0:03:17So we decided to do some research of our own.
0:03:17 > 0:03:20Every mental health trust in England was asked for their figures
0:03:20 > 0:03:24on unexpected patient deaths over the last three years.
0:03:27 > 0:03:28They're recorded when there's
0:03:28 > 0:03:32no obvious sign of a natural cause of death, so they can include
0:03:32 > 0:03:37suicide, accidental overdoses, and also neglect.
0:03:39 > 0:03:43We have results from 33 of the 57 trusts.
0:03:43 > 0:03:46The data is complex because different parts of
0:03:46 > 0:03:49the country collect it in slightly different ways,
0:03:49 > 0:03:53but what our figures show is a clear trend suggesting that
0:03:53 > 0:03:58unexpected deaths have risen by nearly half in the last three years.
0:03:59 > 0:04:04That's 1,000 additional deaths last year in those 33 trusts alone.
0:04:05 > 0:04:07These horrifying figures come
0:04:07 > 0:04:12despite years of Government pledges to prioritise mental health.
0:04:12 > 0:04:13Just last month,
0:04:13 > 0:04:18Theresa May gave a major speech promising to revolutionise care.
0:04:18 > 0:04:20I want us to employ the power of Government as
0:04:20 > 0:04:23a force for good to transform the way we deal with
0:04:23 > 0:04:27mental health problems, right across society and at every stage of life.
0:04:29 > 0:04:33No matter what pledges are made by central government,
0:04:33 > 0:04:38it's local areas that decide where to spend the bulk of the money.
0:04:38 > 0:04:40The difficulty is making the connection between
0:04:40 > 0:04:42announcements at national level and money actually showing up
0:04:42 > 0:04:44at local level to buy more staff,
0:04:44 > 0:04:48to buy more care and really for patients to see the difference.
0:04:50 > 0:04:53And with the whole NHS under unprecedented pressure,
0:04:53 > 0:04:58many areas have decided they can't afford to put it into mental health.
0:04:58 > 0:05:02To make ends meet, trusts are now undertaking major restructures.
0:05:05 > 0:05:07One of our concerns around mental health is just how radical
0:05:07 > 0:05:09many of those transformations are
0:05:09 > 0:05:13but with very little information about were they were a good
0:05:13 > 0:05:16idea for patients and what kind of impact they're having.
0:05:16 > 0:05:19Quite a few of them seem to be about saving money.
0:05:23 > 0:05:26The Norfolk and Suffolk Foundation Trust was one of the first to
0:05:26 > 0:05:29attempt a wholesale restructuring of its services.
0:05:33 > 0:05:37In 2013, faced with cuts of 20%, the trust introduced
0:05:37 > 0:05:39a series of dramatic changes.
0:05:39 > 0:05:42Front-line community teams were disbanded,
0:05:42 > 0:05:45experienced staff laid off and case loads rocketed.
0:05:48 > 0:05:51Since then, unexpected deaths have nearly doubled,
0:05:51 > 0:05:54rising to 157 last year.
0:05:56 > 0:05:59Sheila's son Leo was one of those deaths.
0:06:03 > 0:06:08Before the changes, Leo was seen at least once a week.
0:06:10 > 0:06:12After the changes,
0:06:12 > 0:06:15I asked his nurse and she hadn't seem him for four weeks.
0:06:17 > 0:06:21A 2016 inspection of the trust found that staffing levels were
0:06:21 > 0:06:25"not always sufficient in community teams",
0:06:25 > 0:06:30with one lead care professional being allocated 95 patients.
0:06:31 > 0:06:36The idea that people would be better living in the community is
0:06:36 > 0:06:37a very good idea
0:06:37 > 0:06:44but the support is not there to help them maintain their health.
0:06:44 > 0:06:48I literally am sitting on the chair that my son died in.
0:06:56 > 0:07:03And I know, I know that my son, and I know that people in the trust,
0:07:03 > 0:07:08good people in the trust, know that my son could've been saved.
0:07:12 > 0:07:15At the time the trust introduced the changes, Emma Corlett had
0:07:15 > 0:07:19worked as a mental health nurse in Norfolk for 17 years,
0:07:19 > 0:07:23while Terry Skyrme had been a social worker in the area
0:07:23 > 0:07:25for nearly two decades.
0:07:25 > 0:07:27Both were also union reps.
0:07:27 > 0:07:32They were forced to make cuts by the NHS.
0:07:32 > 0:07:38We had a homeless team in Norwich that was closed immediately.
0:07:38 > 0:07:41And instead of outreach teams, they were specialist teams that were
0:07:41 > 0:07:44set up in the mid-90s because of all the problems in mental health,
0:07:44 > 0:07:46very serious specialist teams,
0:07:46 > 0:07:49they decided to close both of them down, immediately.
0:07:49 > 0:07:53Yeah. So they were the teams that supported people probably with
0:07:53 > 0:07:57the greatest level of vulnerability and greatest level of risk.
0:07:57 > 0:07:59And this is a risk in the community, is it?
0:07:59 > 0:08:01Or is this in hospital?
0:08:01 > 0:08:07It's both. We lost beds and cut community services.
0:08:07 > 0:08:10And because of the budget pressures everything just ended up being
0:08:10 > 0:08:13done really, really quickly.
0:08:13 > 0:08:18We had people turning up at office asking to see their worker,
0:08:18 > 0:08:20not realising that their worker had gone.
0:08:20 > 0:08:23So it was a recipe for disaster right from the start.
0:08:23 > 0:08:25No more cuts! No more deaths!
0:08:25 > 0:08:29After more than a year of raising concerns through official
0:08:29 > 0:08:33channels, Terry and Emma formed what claims to be the largest grass-roots
0:08:33 > 0:08:39local mental health campaign in the country, with over 2,300 supporters.
0:08:39 > 0:08:43Whose NHS? Our NHS!
0:08:43 > 0:08:47The trust followed the activities of the campaign closely.
0:08:47 > 0:08:51They put so much effort into trying to silence us and discredit the
0:08:51 > 0:08:54campaign that they should have been putting into keeping people safe.
0:08:54 > 0:08:56Do you have evidence of that?
0:08:56 > 0:08:58We've got a series of e-mails.
0:08:58 > 0:09:02There's this one here saying, "The chief executive and I had
0:09:02 > 0:09:05"a brief discussion last week and I think it would be helpful to
0:09:05 > 0:09:08"talk about Terry Skyrme and his current actions.
0:09:08 > 0:09:11"I don't see how we can continue to leave him in post."
0:09:11 > 0:09:15Some people in management think like that, don't they?
0:09:15 > 0:09:19They think, you know, you're supposed to do as you're told,
0:09:19 > 0:09:26not protest, not stand out and certainly not publicise things.
0:09:26 > 0:09:29- It fits with the culture of the organisation.- Yeah. Yeah.
0:09:29 > 0:09:32Terry left the trust in 2014,
0:09:32 > 0:09:35while Emma stayed on in her post until April of last year.
0:09:37 > 0:09:39You know, we had three years of trying to improve things.
0:09:39 > 0:09:42- And also, nursing's a great career. - SHE SIGHS
0:09:42 > 0:09:44But you only get one life.
0:09:44 > 0:09:45So I just decided to leave.
0:09:50 > 0:09:54In 2015, the Norfolk and Suffolk Trust was put into
0:09:54 > 0:09:58special measures after inspectors raised concerns over safety,
0:09:58 > 0:10:01staffing shortages and a lack of beds.
0:10:03 > 0:10:07Over the two years I've been investigating this story, numerous
0:10:07 > 0:10:11health professionals have told me of their concerns about bed shortages.
0:10:11 > 0:10:16Most are reluctant to go on record, fearing possible consequences.
0:10:16 > 0:10:19However, one front-line mental health professional agreed to talk
0:10:19 > 0:10:22to me on condition of strict anonymity.
0:10:23 > 0:10:27There's been a huge rise in unexpected deaths across the area
0:10:27 > 0:10:29and no-one seems willing to acknowledge
0:10:29 > 0:10:31it's a result of the cuts.
0:10:31 > 0:10:35Can you tell me, what has happened with hospital beds?
0:10:35 > 0:10:39A few years ago, it was possible most of the time to access
0:10:39 > 0:10:40a local bed.
0:10:40 > 0:10:41But that's not the case now.
0:10:41 > 0:10:45And it hasn't been the case for three or four years.
0:10:45 > 0:10:48If there are not beds, then there's no purpose in attending the
0:10:48 > 0:10:52address and agitating the person by carrying out an assessment.
0:10:52 > 0:10:56So I'm asking relatives to carry on looking after someone under
0:10:56 > 0:10:58great stress with the possibility
0:10:58 > 0:11:00that if that person is suicidal,
0:11:00 > 0:11:04they may complete a suicide while they're waiting for a bed,
0:11:04 > 0:11:07which is very distressing for the carers and for me as a worker.
0:11:07 > 0:11:13So, overall, how do you feel about the trust's services it's providing?
0:11:13 > 0:11:15I would say they're inadequate,
0:11:15 > 0:11:19unsafe and a disgrace to a so-called civilised society.
0:11:21 > 0:11:25Recently the Norfolk and Suffolk Trust came out of special measures
0:11:25 > 0:11:30despite the numbers of unexpected deaths continuing to rise.
0:11:30 > 0:11:36Between 2012 and 2016 the trust closed 136 psychiatric beds,
0:11:36 > 0:11:41a cut of about a quarter, even though demand continued to rise.
0:11:44 > 0:11:48Norwich residents Alison and Simon Gathercole discovered how difficult
0:11:48 > 0:11:53it is to get an emergency bed from the trust just a few weeks ago.
0:11:53 > 0:11:56Their 20-year-old daughter Sophie has been diagnosed
0:11:56 > 0:12:01with a personality disorder, anxiety and has visual hallucinations.
0:12:03 > 0:12:07Shortly before Christmas, her self-harming escalated in
0:12:07 > 0:12:11a horrifying cutting incident in the family bathroom.
0:12:12 > 0:12:16So she opened the door and I was confronted for the very first
0:12:16 > 0:12:18time with a bloodbath.
0:12:19 > 0:12:24Simon photographed the scene to show just how bad things had got.
0:12:24 > 0:12:28And that one moment, I think,
0:12:28 > 0:12:31above all the things that I thought,
0:12:31 > 0:12:32changed my perception.
0:12:35 > 0:12:36In what way?
0:12:41 > 0:12:43Seeing somebody you love...
0:12:44 > 0:12:46..in a hopeless state.
0:12:48 > 0:12:51And not really being able to help.
0:12:53 > 0:12:57Then on New Year's Eve, Sophie cut her wrists and was rushed by
0:12:57 > 0:12:59ambulance to A&E.
0:12:59 > 0:13:02She was sent home with the promise the mental health crisis team
0:13:02 > 0:13:04would see her in the morning.
0:13:04 > 0:13:08Alison hoped that would mean a safe bed in a hospital.
0:13:09 > 0:13:13Got up the next morning, debated with Simon as to who was
0:13:13 > 0:13:16going to go up and see if Sophie was still alive.
0:13:16 > 0:13:20Can you imagine waking up every day and almost tossing a coin to
0:13:20 > 0:13:25go upstairs to see whether your own flesh and blood is still alive?
0:13:25 > 0:13:28It's just a living nightmare.
0:13:32 > 0:13:35Sophie did survive the night, but there were
0:13:35 > 0:13:38no plans in place for her to see the crisis team.
0:13:38 > 0:13:43Trying to remain calm, Alison contacted the out of hours GP.
0:13:43 > 0:13:45By the time they arrived at his surgery,
0:13:45 > 0:13:49Sophie had self-harmed again, cutting her leg.
0:13:49 > 0:13:53So he gets on the phone to the crisis team
0:13:53 > 0:13:55and a lady answers the phone
0:13:55 > 0:13:59and he explains the situation to this lady
0:13:59 > 0:14:01and the lady point-blank turned round and said,
0:14:01 > 0:14:03"No, we're not seeing Sophie."
0:14:08 > 0:14:11The GP's only option was to send her to A&E
0:14:11 > 0:14:14to treat her now heavily bleeding leg.
0:14:19 > 0:14:23In through these curtains swished a lady and she said,
0:14:23 > 0:14:27"I'm the mental health nurse, I've come to see Sophie
0:14:27 > 0:14:31"but, oh, I know you, Sophie, don't I? I've met you many times
0:14:31 > 0:14:34"and we know you're not psychotic and we know you're not ill
0:14:34 > 0:14:38"and you just need to be patched up with your leg and to go home."
0:14:38 > 0:14:42Sophie just absolutely went berserk.
0:14:42 > 0:14:44She got off the bed,
0:14:44 > 0:14:48she started trying to steal needles out of trolleys,
0:14:48 > 0:14:53she stole an EpiPen and was trying to stab herself with it
0:14:53 > 0:14:57and within minutes I had three security guards in the room with me.
0:14:57 > 0:15:01Yet this lady was saying, "She can go home."
0:15:01 > 0:15:02I was distraught.
0:15:02 > 0:15:06And the charge nurse came and he said, "Don't worry,"
0:15:06 > 0:15:09he said, "We'll try and sort this out."
0:15:09 > 0:15:11And he did, thankfully.
0:15:17 > 0:15:20The nurse in A&E kept Sophie in overnight
0:15:20 > 0:15:22on a ward in the General Hospital.
0:15:22 > 0:15:24The following morning,
0:15:24 > 0:15:27the mental health crisis team agreed to see her -
0:15:27 > 0:15:3236 hours after she first slashed her wrists.
0:15:32 > 0:15:35They phoned us about 9:30 and said,
0:15:35 > 0:15:38"OK, we've assessed Sophie, we're going to send her home."
0:15:38 > 0:15:43And at that point Simon and I both looked at one another and said,
0:15:43 > 0:15:45"There's no way we can keep her safe."
0:15:45 > 0:15:47Can't cope with it any more.
0:15:47 > 0:15:51Finally, after four desperate pleas for help, the crisis team
0:15:51 > 0:15:55found Sophie a psychiatric bed at the trust's Hellesdon Hospital.
0:16:01 > 0:16:04The national picture is just as bleak.
0:16:04 > 0:16:06The number of psychiatric beds in the UK
0:16:06 > 0:16:12has almost halved since 2000 - a cut of about 25,000 beds.
0:16:16 > 0:16:18And it's not just beds.
0:16:18 > 0:16:21New analysis on funding, for Panorama, explains why
0:16:21 > 0:16:25so many mental health trusts, which provide most of the care,
0:16:25 > 0:16:27are struggling.
0:16:27 > 0:16:31Over the last four years, the amount that we spend on health care in
0:16:31 > 0:16:35England has increased by about £8 billion.
0:16:35 > 0:16:39But mental health trusts have received none of that increase.
0:16:39 > 0:16:42In fact, when you allow for inflation,
0:16:42 > 0:16:46their funding has actually fallen by £150 million.
0:16:46 > 0:16:48So, you're saying they weren't prioritised?
0:16:48 > 0:16:51So, they've actually got a falling share of the cake.
0:16:51 > 0:16:55The NHS has not set out to cut mental health services
0:16:55 > 0:17:00but what they've found is as they've got rising patient demand elsewhere
0:17:00 > 0:17:04they've had to look for cuts to make up that budget shortfall
0:17:04 > 0:17:07and often it is mental health services that have borne the brunt
0:17:07 > 0:17:09of those cuts.
0:17:09 > 0:17:12Mental illness causes about a quarter of our burden of
0:17:12 > 0:17:17disease, yet receives only 11% of NHS funding.
0:17:17 > 0:17:21The impact on trusts, where most of the money is spent, can be
0:17:21 > 0:17:25that clinically proven treatments are not available to patients.
0:17:25 > 0:17:3022-year-old student Kerry Hunter took her own life last spring.
0:17:30 > 0:17:33Her father, Adam, and her brother, James, feel that
0:17:33 > 0:17:37the Norfolk and Suffolk Trust could've done much more to help her.
0:17:40 > 0:17:44I met them at the park which was once one of her favourite places.
0:17:46 > 0:17:48We just used to come all the time.
0:17:48 > 0:17:50She liked the outdoors.
0:17:50 > 0:17:51When she was younger.
0:17:51 > 0:17:53I mean, she became more reclusive
0:17:53 > 0:17:55with the mental health problems.
0:17:57 > 0:18:03I remember her as a bubbly, caring,
0:18:03 > 0:18:09loving girl that all she ever wanted to do was help people.
0:18:09 > 0:18:11It wasn't just losing my sister.
0:18:11 > 0:18:14To me, it was losing one of my closest friends.
0:18:14 > 0:18:18Kerry had a borderline personality disorder, or BPD,
0:18:18 > 0:18:22but was never offered the specialist talking therapy that NICE,
0:18:22 > 0:18:24the Government health advisory body,
0:18:24 > 0:18:27recommends for her condition.
0:18:27 > 0:18:31How do you feel about the level of mental health care
0:18:31 > 0:18:32that she received?
0:18:34 > 0:18:36What mental health care?
0:18:36 > 0:18:38Erm...
0:18:41 > 0:18:47No matter how many times she tried to hurt herself,
0:18:47 > 0:18:51you know, the only things that she was ever offered were things she'd
0:18:51 > 0:18:53already tried unsuccessfully.
0:18:53 > 0:18:57They actually fund for people to go to Norfolk and get the correct
0:18:57 > 0:18:59treatment for BPD.
0:19:00 > 0:19:02But my sister was not deemed severe enough,
0:19:02 > 0:19:04even after multiple attempts on her own life.
0:19:11 > 0:19:15When mental health services are severely stretched, there's a
0:19:15 > 0:19:19fear people can fall through the net and end up living on the streets.
0:19:24 > 0:19:28It's estimated that four in ten people sleeping rough in
0:19:28 > 0:19:30England have mental health problems.
0:19:30 > 0:19:33Here in Ipswich, the number of rough sleepers
0:19:33 > 0:19:36has more than trebled in three years.
0:19:40 > 0:19:43Local churches have stepped into the breach, offering 12 homeless
0:19:43 > 0:19:49people shelter and a warm meal every night for three months this winter.
0:19:49 > 0:19:53About half of their guests have diagnosed mental health problems.
0:19:53 > 0:19:56Many feel they've been abandoned by the NHS.
0:19:56 > 0:20:00Mental Health Service in Ipswich might as well be none, zero.
0:20:00 > 0:20:02No help, no support.
0:20:02 > 0:20:05There's plenty of people out there with mental health problems
0:20:05 > 0:20:07but there's no help out there for them.
0:20:07 > 0:20:10That's why people are in homeless situations,
0:20:10 > 0:20:14or whatever they're in, cos nobody is there to help them.
0:20:16 > 0:20:20It took me overdosing, trying to take my own life,
0:20:20 > 0:20:21for a psychiatric appointment
0:20:21 > 0:20:24to actually become available to myself.
0:20:24 > 0:20:29The Reverend Canon Paul Daltry set up this scheme in 2011.
0:20:29 > 0:20:31Have you seen a change in mental health services
0:20:31 > 0:20:33over the past few years?
0:20:33 > 0:20:35What I would say is that the guests that we get into the
0:20:35 > 0:20:39shelter are indicative of the problems that we've got
0:20:39 > 0:20:42through the health system and our own system. It's not just health.
0:20:42 > 0:20:46The numbers are going up, there are people falling through the nets and
0:20:46 > 0:20:49it's showing that there's something not really working.
0:20:49 > 0:20:53We have no contact with anybody from the mental health service,
0:20:53 > 0:20:56so if something happens here, we've got no contact.
0:20:56 > 0:20:59So we've got a set of wonderful volunteers, who we do give some
0:20:59 > 0:21:04training for, but all they've got, all that they can do is ring 999.
0:21:04 > 0:21:07And there's no other links that they can go to,
0:21:07 > 0:21:09other advice they can go to.
0:21:09 > 0:21:12We're not the professionals, we are volunteers.
0:21:12 > 0:21:15And so that is a very, very real problem.
0:21:15 > 0:21:18And if the system isn't improved, what is the danger?
0:21:18 > 0:21:21We're going to see more people dying,
0:21:21 > 0:21:23we're going to see more people on our streets,
0:21:23 > 0:21:26we're going to see a gradual breakdown in those who are
0:21:26 > 0:21:28most marginalised in our country.
0:21:30 > 0:21:33There are thousands of people with mental health problems
0:21:33 > 0:21:35sleeping rough across the UK
0:21:35 > 0:21:39but charities simply don't have the resources to offer all of
0:21:39 > 0:21:44them the kind of support available to this small group in Ipswich.
0:21:44 > 0:21:47Coming here's helped a lot.
0:21:47 > 0:21:50I am completely on that level now where I am stable, I'm not up,
0:21:50 > 0:21:53I'm not down, I'm just on that level path
0:21:53 > 0:21:57and I can now start to sort my life out again.
0:21:57 > 0:22:00It's not just about coming here, having a roof over your head
0:22:00 > 0:22:03so you can sleep and hot food in your belly, it's the fact that
0:22:03 > 0:22:05the staff here, they support you. If you're having issues,
0:22:05 > 0:22:07all you've got to do is pull one of them aside.
0:22:12 > 0:22:15Mental health services in Ipswich are provided
0:22:15 > 0:22:17by the Norfolk and Suffolk Trust,
0:22:17 > 0:22:20where Michael Scott was appointed chief executive
0:22:20 > 0:22:22nearly three years ago.
0:22:22 > 0:22:25I met him, armed with figures which had been leaked to
0:22:25 > 0:22:28me from the most recent board meeting.
0:22:28 > 0:22:31They prove that the rate of unexpected deaths
0:22:31 > 0:22:36compared to the number of patients is still rising.
0:22:36 > 0:22:39Well, five years ago before I joined the trust, the trust was under
0:22:39 > 0:22:41financial pressure. There's no doubt about that.
0:22:41 > 0:22:45And it had to respond to that financial pressure by changing
0:22:45 > 0:22:47the way it ran its services.
0:22:47 > 0:22:51And my personal view is I think mistakes were made in that period.
0:22:51 > 0:22:55- And now you say you've got it right, do you?- I'm not saying that at all.
0:22:55 > 0:22:57I'm saying we're on a journey of improvement.
0:22:57 > 0:23:00How can this be a journey of improvement
0:23:00 > 0:23:03if more and more of your patients are dying?
0:23:03 > 0:23:06What the facts actually show is that one of the reasons that those
0:23:06 > 0:23:09numbers are changing is that we are providing more services than
0:23:09 > 0:23:13we ever did before and we're seeing more and more people.
0:23:13 > 0:23:18Sadly, some of those die, but you really can't compare the years
0:23:18 > 0:23:20before to the years now.
0:23:20 > 0:23:23I mean, you'll recognise this document because it's actually from
0:23:23 > 0:23:25your latest board meeting.
0:23:25 > 0:23:26And in it, it has a graph
0:23:26 > 0:23:30and you've adjusted the patient numbers per 100,000.
0:23:30 > 0:23:32And you can see the red line.
0:23:32 > 0:23:35The numbers of unexpected deaths have continued to rise,
0:23:35 > 0:23:38so it's not about the patient population, is it?
0:23:38 > 0:23:42It's about the services we provide and the way we provide new services.
0:23:42 > 0:23:45But we've acknowledged that people are dying.
0:23:45 > 0:23:47What's important is that we understand the causes.
0:23:47 > 0:23:52You feel the trust learns lessons and listens to its critics?
0:23:52 > 0:23:56I mean, we've spoken to a number of people who consider themselves to be
0:23:56 > 0:23:59whistle-blowers who say that the trust hasn't listened,
0:23:59 > 0:24:02that it's tried to discredit them.
0:24:02 > 0:24:04It's not a picture I recognise and it's not one that I think
0:24:04 > 0:24:07the majority of our staff would recognise.
0:24:07 > 0:24:10Are you getting all the money that you need?
0:24:10 > 0:24:13Five years ago we were not getting the money we needed -
0:24:13 > 0:24:15before I was with the trust.
0:24:15 > 0:24:19That is now changing, so new money is coming through specifically
0:24:19 > 0:24:21for mental health, and we welcome that.
0:24:21 > 0:24:24We welcome the new focus on mental health. It's long overdue.
0:24:25 > 0:24:27The Department of Health says...
0:24:27 > 0:24:31"Just this year, mental health spending by clinical commissioning
0:24:31 > 0:24:34"groups has gone up by £342 million,
0:24:34 > 0:24:37"which is on top of an extra £1.4 billion
0:24:37 > 0:24:40"allocated in this Parliament.
0:24:40 > 0:24:43"This increase in the number of deaths is to be expected because the
0:24:43 > 0:24:47"NHS is very deliberately improving the way such events are recorded
0:24:47 > 0:24:50"and investigated, following past failings."
0:24:50 > 0:24:54NHS England says improvements in care are already underway as
0:24:54 > 0:24:57part of a nationwide plan.
0:24:57 > 0:25:01But that's made little difference to Simon and Alison Gathercole.
0:25:01 > 0:25:04They have made regular visits to their daughter, Sophie, since
0:25:04 > 0:25:09she was allocated a psychiatric bed after their nightmare over New Year.
0:25:17 > 0:25:19The day she was admitted into the hospital,
0:25:19 > 0:25:22I did feel that huge relief
0:25:22 > 0:25:27because I felt the responsibility of keeping Sophie safe had been
0:25:27 > 0:25:32taken away from me and somebody else was responsible.
0:25:32 > 0:25:33Currently, at the moment,
0:25:33 > 0:25:37the staff at the hospital are doing everything they can for her
0:25:37 > 0:25:39and we can't fault what they're doing.
0:25:39 > 0:25:44- I mean, they're quite attentive, aren't they? You know.- Yep.
0:25:44 > 0:25:47But it's almost a little bit too late, if you know what I mean?
0:25:48 > 0:25:52Nearly every mental health trust in the country is currently in
0:25:52 > 0:25:55the process of restructuring their services.
0:25:55 > 0:26:00There are fears they may follow the same path as Norfolk and Suffolk.
0:26:00 > 0:26:03This is really a warning, both to mental health, but also to the NHS
0:26:03 > 0:26:05more widely, about when you make major change.
0:26:05 > 0:26:08Make sure you've got your evidence-base solid
0:26:08 > 0:26:11and that you're monitoring progress as you go along.
0:26:11 > 0:26:15And despite the soaring numbers of unexpected deaths among
0:26:15 > 0:26:18mental health patients, there are worrying signs that
0:26:18 > 0:26:22front-line services around the country face further cuts.
0:26:22 > 0:26:26I've been in meetings with chief execs and chairs of
0:26:26 > 0:26:29trusts who are openly talking about that they'll have to
0:26:29 > 0:26:31decommission services next year.
0:26:31 > 0:26:35But what is, I think, tragic is that it's the time when we have been
0:26:35 > 0:26:38promised increased funding, and there is
0:26:38 > 0:26:42no doubt this is not getting to where it is intended.
0:26:42 > 0:26:43It's great to hear the Prime Minister
0:26:43 > 0:26:45talking about mental health,
0:26:45 > 0:26:49but a system that cannot fulfil those promises is
0:26:49 > 0:26:52a system that is not working to the advantage of those with
0:26:52 > 0:26:54mental disorders and their families.
0:26:54 > 0:26:57Somewhere along the line, somebody needs to sit down with these
0:26:57 > 0:26:59people and say, "Look, these are the issues,
0:26:59 > 0:27:01"let's actually do something about it."
0:27:01 > 0:27:03Because there's a long line of my daughters out there,
0:27:03 > 0:27:05all waiting to do the same thing.