The family of a man who committed murder during an escape from a secure mental health unit have told Sky News they were “failed” by the trust that was meant to be caring for him.

Joshua Carroll is currently waiting to be sentenced for the murder of Headley Thomas, known as Barry, after beating him to death in a park in Trafford, Manchester, in September 2022.

At the time of the attack, Joshua was in the care of Greater Manchester Mental Health Trust (GMMH). He was being treated as an inpatient at Park House, a unit which has now closed down.

Joshua’s mum and sister say he escaped from the unit 21 times – and they repeatedly complained to the trust and asked for help.

Leanne Carroll, Joshua’s sister, told Sky News: “The night it happened, Joshua had come to my house. And it was just a normal ‘oh Joshua has escaped from hospital again’. Nothing appeared any different.”

She says they didn’t find out about what had happened until Joshua was arrested weeks later – and “everything fell apart from there”.

“My heart broke,” said Joshua’s mum, Julie Carroll. “It’s just a horrible, horrible situation.”

Joshua had been diagnosed with conditions including schizoaffective disorder, and had been in and out of inpatient care for around 15 years, his family said.

They showed me more than 20 pages of complaints and responses from GMMH about his repeated escapes, dating back eight years before the murder.

After Joshua’s fourth escape from Park House, his family asked for him to be moved to another unit, saying they were concerned about security.

This didn’t happen, with the trust citing capacity issues. His family complained once again about his escapes just five weeks before the murder, in August 2022.

“We are very, very angry and disappointed,” said Julie. “You think if your child is in hospital, and they are very poorly, that they are going to be looked after – they will be safe and they will be secure. But that wasn’t the case for Josh.”

Although Joshua was convicted of murder, Leanne says his family hold GMMH partly responsible.

“If you had done your job properly – none of this would have happened,” she said. “Two families wouldn’t have been destroyed and so many hearts wouldn’t have been broken.”

Since 2022, GMMH has been served with several Section 29A warning notices by the Care Quality Commission. These are issued when the commission decides a service needs to make significant improvements, and there is a risk of harm.

In the case of GMMH, their concerns included “ward security systems not consistently keeping people safe”.

Dr John Mulligan is a clinical psychologist for GMMH, working in the community for the early intervention in psychosis service, and a representative for the union Unite.

He and his colleagues have been going on strike repeatedly across the past seven months, saying they just don’t have the staffing levels they need to keep people safe.

“Thankfully, violent incidents among our service users are quite rare, they are much more likely to be the victims of violence and aggression,” he said. “But serious incidents are happening regularly. Far too regularly.

“It’s very upsetting for staff and for patients and families.”

Salli Midgley, chief nurse at the Greater Manchester Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust said: “On behalf of GMMH, we express our heartfelt condolences to Headley Thomas’s loved ones at this very sad time.

“Our thoughts and sympathies remain with everyone who has been affected by this most devastating incident. We are deeply sorry that it happened while Joshua Carroll was under our care.

“Under the trust’s new leadership, we have been working closely with NHS England, our commissioners and the CQC to create better, safer and well-led services for all.”

She continued: “A huge amount of progress has already been made but we know we still have a lot to do to improve our services.

“As part of this work, we are currently carrying out an in-depth investigation into the care and treatment provided to Mr Carroll, and the circumstances leading to Mr Thomas’ death, the findings of which will be shared with NHS England.

“We are unable to comment further on this case whilst the investigation is ongoing.”

Barry Thomas’s family told Sky News mental health is a very serious issue – but they believe Joshua Carroll tried to “play down his actions”.

They said: “Let’s all remember that a life was taken. Our brother, father, and uncle. The evidence the police gathered was in plain sight for all to see.

“We, the family, would like to thank all the police involved for the work they have done, in bringing justice for Barry.”

The Manchester Arena bomb plotter Hashem Abedi has been moved back to Belmarsh prison after an alleged attack at HMP Frankland on Saturday.

Three prison officers at the high-security jail in County Durham were attacked with cooking oil before being stabbed with an improvised weapon.

Abedi has been transferred to Belmarsh prison in southeast London where he’d previously been found guilty of attacking a prison officer in 2020, along with two other convicted terrorists.

Belmarsh is considered the most high-security prison in the UK.

Abedi has been moved to the only available highly-controlled ‘suite’ cell in the country – a standalone self-contained unit monitored by a minimum of five people at any one time, and a prison dog.

There are only four such cells across England and Wales.

Abedi was convicted of assisting the Manchester terror plot, in which his brother Salman Abedi killed himself and 22 other people by detonating a bomb in a rucksack at an Ariana Grande concert in May 2017.

Hashem Abedi was sentenced in 2020 to at least 55 years in prison after being found guilty of 22 counts of murder over the atrocity.

Meanwhile, the government has said it will commission a review into the incident at HMP Frankland, after suspending access to cooking facilities in separation units, which is where the alleged attack took place.

Sky News understands the Prison Officers Association, after visiting staff who were on duty at the category A jail this week, have written to Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer calling for urgent action in order to protect prison staff in the high-security estate.

The union wants to see prison officers working there given stab-proof vests, access to tasers in certain situations, and not just a suspension of self cooking facilities in separation units but a full ban.

Separation units house the country’s most dangerous and violent criminals.

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There have been a series of violent attacks across prisons in England and Wales, only days apart.

On Sunday, convicted killer John Mansfield was found dead at a category A prison, HMP Whitemoor, in Cambridgeshire. Police said they arrested a 44-year-old man on suspicion of murder.

Sky News also understands there was an incident on Tuesday lunchtime at HMP Lowdham Grange in Nottinghamshire.

A specialist ‘response group’ consisting of officers from outside the prison were deployed to bring the situation under control, along with a ‘hostage’ situation, while prisoners climbed on the roof and netting. The situation was brought under control within an hour.

Prisons minister Lord Timpson said it was “another sign of the problems we are facing in our prison with prisons that are overcrowded and violent”.

More than 1,000 miles of roadworks are set to be lifted in England to allow for millions of motorists to have a “smooth” journey over the Easter holidays.

Roadworks from 1,127 miles of motorways and major A roads will be removed by National Highways from 6am on Thursday, meaning 97.5% of its network will be free of traffic cones.

The roadworks will only be reintroduced after Easter Monday.

According to the AA, an estimated 19.1 million people in the UK will drive on Good Friday, along with 18.5 million hitting the road on Saturday and 18.2 million on Easter Sunday and Easter Monday respectively.

National Highways director of operational services, Andrew Butterfield, said: “We expect the roads to be busy with people looking to make the most of a long Easter weekend.

“That’s why we are making journeys easier by removing a huge number of roadworks.”

Despite that the RAC warned that drivers face a “hat-trick of hold-ups” on Thursday, Good Friday and Saturday as families try to get the most out of the end of the school holidays for many.

‘Plan ahead’

Mr Butterfield urged motorists to “take time to plan ahead” as he said: “Two of the top three causes of breakdowns are tyre issues and empty fuel tanks.

“You can help prevent any breakdowns by following our advice: top up your fuel, oil and screen wash, plan your journey, check your tyres and prepare for all weather conditions.”

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Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander said: “Cutting journey times and saving drivers money every year is all part of our Plan for Change to raise living standards and put more money in people’s pockets.

“We are tackling the real problems that drivers face by lifting 1,127 miles of roadworks over Easter and cracking down on disruptive streetworks to make journeys to see loved ones as smooth as possible.”