Overview
- The Health Secretary announced a full public inquiry into Tees, Esk and Wear Valleys NHS Foundation Trust after years of failures in inpatient mental health care.
- The inquiry will have legal powers to call witnesses, with bereaved families consulted on the chair and the scope.
- Officials indicated the process could take up to three years and will run separately from other national mental health inquiries, including the Lampard Inquiry.
- TEWV chief executive Alison Smith said the trust will fully support the process, pledging transparency, openness and humility.
- Campaigning families and local MPs welcomed the move, citing multiple patient deaths since 2019 and a 2024 CQC prosecution that resulted in a six‑figure fine.