Mental health patients ‘raped and sexually assaulted’ in NHS care as ‘national scandal’ revealed
Mental health patients have alleged they were raped and sexually assaulted while being treated by the NHS, in what has been described as a “national scandal”.
An investigation by Sky News and The Independent has uncovered nearly 20,000 complaints of sexual assault, abuse and harassment, involving both patients and staff, across more than 30 mental health trusts in England since 2019.
The investigation was sparked by the testimony of Alexis Quinn – a former British youth swimmer whose story is told in the new Sky News podcast Patient 11 – after she escaped from psychiatric care following complaints of sexual assault by male patients.
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In both instances, Alexis’s alleged attackers faced no criminal action.
Multiple patients and their families have come forward to tell their stories.
They include a law graduate who described how she was sexually assaulted by a male staff member before being moved on to a mixed-gender psychiatric unit.
Meanwhile, a mother-of-two said she was subjected to five months of “horrific” sexual abuse at the hands of a male staff member.
“I thought it was just me,” Alexis told Sky News.
“But it’s not just me – there are thousands of people [like me].”
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‘I’m just being traumatised’
In 2011, the Department of Health committed to eradicating mixed-sex care across all its inpatient services.
Despite this, more than 12 years on, Sky News and The Independent has identified hundreds of allegations of rape and sexual assault in mixed-sex wards and shared spaces in NHS England psychiatric care.
Following more than 50 freedom of information requests to NHS England mental health trusts, with 38 responses, we can reveal:
• Nearly 20,000 “sexual safety incidents” were reported on inpatient mental health wards between 2019 and 2023 – with the annual figure rising each year
A sexual safety incident is defined as any unwanted sexual behaviour that makes a person feel uncomfortable or unsafe. This includes rape, sexual assault, sexual harassment, comments of a sexual nature or observing sexual behaviour, including exposure to nakedness.
• Nearly 4,000 sexual safety incidents were reported between January and August 2023 – higher than the annual total for both 2019 and 2020
• That trusts are largely failing to apply 2020 government-backed sexual safeguarding protections, with only six authorities demonstrating that they are doing so
A separate FOI request conducted by The Independent revealed:
• More than 800 allegations of sexual assault and rape involving female patients across more than 20 trusts between 2019 and 2023 – only 95 of which were reported to the police
• More than 500 allegations of sexual assault and rape in mixed male and female NHS England psychiatric inpatient settings, across more than 20 trusts
The findings have been described as a “national scandal” by former Victim’s Commissioner Dame Vera Baird.
Meanwhile, Dr Lade Smith, president of the Royal College of Psychiatrists, said: “The horrendous findings show that there is still much to do to make sure that patients and staff in mental health trusts are protected from sexual harms at all times.
“It is deeply troubling to see that so few incidents in mental health settings go unreported.”
Labour’s shadow health secretary Wes Streeting said it was “chilling” that these “horrific” alleged crimes were reported to have taken place in the NHS.
“Very serious questions must urgently be asked of hospital leaders, who have to explain why the vast majority of these incidents were kept from the police,” he added.
“NHS England must explain why so few trusts have implemented sexual safeguarding protections designed to keep patients safe.
“The government must treat this investigation as a wake-up call and act against the soaring number of mixed-sex wards in the NHS today.”
‘He started to touch me on my breasts’
In 2012, Alexis – a mother who worked as a teacher – entered care following the death of her brother.
Undiagnosed with autism, she complained of a sexual assault by a male patient at Kent’s Littlebrook hospital on Christmas Day in 2013 after she was placed on an all-male ward.
Alexis Quinn was a British youth swimmer. Pic: Alexis Quinn
“I was in such a bad way… it was Christmas Day and I wasn’t with my little girl,” she said.
“He pressed me up against the door and lifted my top up. And he started to touch me on my breasts and then pulled my trousers down.
“All I could hear was his breathing and everything was slow and really loud and [I remember] not being able to move and being stuck.”
In a letter to her family in early 2014, Kent and Medway NHS Trust said Alexis “should not have been admitted as the sole female patient on a ward with other male patients” and committed to her safeguarding.
But just months later in 2014, Alexis made a second complaint after being moved to yet another mixed-gender care setting at St Martin’s Hospital in Kent.
The University of Edinburgh graduate said: “I was getting some treatment in a treatment room with a female nurse.
“I’d just come in from a run so I was wearing running shorts and a running vest top and a male patient came into the treatment room and started groping me on my breasts and on my bum.”
Addressing the second complaint, Kent and Medway NHS Trust said it was “unfortunate that incidents like these occur due to the acute nature of the patients admitted” to the ward.
Alexis’s alleged attackers faced no criminal action because they were deemed “not to have the capacity to go through a police investigation,” according to her mother Linda.
Alexis Quinn says she suffered a black eye as a result of being restrained in 2015. Pic: Alexis Quinn
Kent and Medway NHS Trust told Sky News it has eradicated mixed wards, adding: “We continue to offer out sincerest apologies to Alexis for the unacceptable behaviour she experienced when she was in our care.”
Sectioned under the Mental Health Act and legally detained, Alexis spent almost four years in largely locked-in care environments, including the now-closed Milton Park Therapeutic Campus in Bedfordshire, where she said she had to shower in front of male staff members.
‘I felt sick… and I just cried’
Like Alexis, autism patient Rivkah Grant said she found herself exposed to mixed-gender NHS mental health inpatient settings when battling depression.
The 34-year-old law graduate, originally from Enfield, north London, said she was sexually assaulted by a male healthcare worker while on a female ward at Chase Farm Hospital in 2016.
“There was one staff member and he seemed really nice and supportive,” she told Sky News and The Independent.
“I didn’t realise at the time that this was a bad thing – that he was in my room when I was by myself in the night with the door shut.”
She described being sexually assaulted by the staff member, saying: “He said to me that I must promise not to tell anyone, [or] he’d lose his job.
“I felt sick and I suddenly felt it all – what has happened? And I just cried.”
Autism patient Rivkah Grant said she was sexually assaulted by a male healthcare worker
Following the incident, Rivkah said she was moved to a mixed-sex ward, despite having told staff she’d been sexually assaulted.
Her attacker was convicted in June 2017 following a police investigation.
‘There is no safety in mental health hospitals’
North London Mental Health Partnership, which now runs Chase Farm Hospital, said the safety of its users is the top priority and that it is “deeply sorry” for what happened to Rivkah.
It said it has since strengthened its safeguarding process.
“I thought I was in a safe place,” Rivkah said. “And you believe you when you’re in a hospital, you should be safe. You’re in a place where there’s 24/7 care.
“And unfortunately, obviously, I’ve learned that there is no safety in mental health hospitals.
“I know I’m not the only person who has been through it.”
In 2020, after the Care Quality Commission raised national concerns over sexual abuse in mental health services, the NHS set up new guidelines under its “sexual safety collaboratives”.
Just six trusts have provided evidence they have met the collaboratives’ guidelines, in response to Sky News’ FOI requests.
‘He’s a sexual predator’
In 2015, Stephanie Tutty sought help from Essex mental health services while dealing with the trauma of a rape she suffered in her youth.
While under the care of Essex Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust, the 28-year old mother-of-two said she suffered repeated sexual abuse by a male staff member over a five-month period.
Stephanie Tutty said she suffered repeated sexual abuse by a male staff member. Pic: Stephanie Tutty
After a two-year investigation, she said she was told by police in 2017 that her case could not proceed due to the low likelihood of conviction.
She said: “What happened with [the alleged abuser] will always have a lasting impact on me, even more so than the first rape that made me unwell in the first place.
“He is a predator, with no other words for him – he’s a sexual predator.”
Essex Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust told Sky News and The Independent that reports like Stephanie’s are immediately referred to the safeguarding team and fully investigated.
Charlie Brooker, honorary professor of criminology and mental health at London’s Royal Holloway University, has examined the relationship between sexual assault and mental illness.
He told Sky News and The Independent there should now be an inquiry into sexual safety in mental health wards.
Professor Charlie Brooker has called for an inquiry into sexual safety in mental health wards
He said: “If an inquiry was set up to look at sexual safety in mental health inpatient wards – because in my opinion, it should be – it would be fascinating to see how many people came forward and wanted to give evidence.
“I won’t be at all surprised if it wasn’t several thousand.”
What has the NHS and the government said?
In a statement, NHS England said: “We are taking action to ensure the safety of patients and staff, including rolling out better reporting mechanisms, training and support as part of the NHS’s new Sexual Safety Charter.
“NHS England has advised all Trusts and local health systems to appoint a domestic abuse and sexual violence lead to support patients and staff to report incidents and access support, with more than 300 now in place.”
NHS England went on to cite its commitment to the 2020 government-backed sexual safety protections, despite only six trusts demonstrating their application.
A Department of Health spokesperson said: “Sexual violence or misconduct of any kind is unacceptable and has no place in the NHS, and NHS organisations have a responsibility to protect both staff and patients.
“We are working closely with the NHS to ensure anyone receiving treatment in a mental health facility receives safe, high-quality care, and is looked after with dignity and respect.”
Three people have died following a helicopter crash during a flying lesson on the Isle of Wight.
A fourth person is in hospital in a serious condition following the incident, according to Hampshire Police.
Officers were called to the scene of a “helicopter that had come down” off Shanklin Road near Ventnor at 9.24am on Monday, the force said.
A spokesman for the aircraft’s owner Northumbria Helicopters said G-OCLV – which is listed as a Robinson R44 II helicopter – was involved in the accident during a flying lesson.
Fire and rescue vehicles at the scene near Ventnor. Pic: Stu Southwell
Aerial view of the crash site
Four people, including the pilot, were on board the aircraft, which departed nearby Sandown Airport at 9am, the company also said in a statement.
A critical care team, including a doctor and specialist paramedic, was also sent to the crash site, Hants and Isle of Wight Air Ambulance added, alongside fire engines and other emergency vehicles.
The Air Accidents Investigation Branch confirmed it was alerted to the incident and was sending a team to investigate. A major incident was declared but has since been stood down.
A spokesperson for Hampshire and Isle of Wight Air Ambulance said in a statement: “We have treated and airlifted one patient to the Major Trauma Centre, University Hospital Southampton. Our thoughts are with them, and everyone involved in today’s incident.”
Darren Toogood, editor and publisher at the Island Echo, told Sky News presenter Kamali Melbourne the helicopter crashed on a “significantly busy, high-speed road” between the village of Godshill and the seaside town of Shanklin.
“It was on one of the first flights of the day,” he said.
“It’s a bank holiday weekend in August on the Isle of Wight. It’s an incredibly busy area. Lots of tourists down at the moment. It appears no vehicles were involved, which is incredible, given how busy this road would have been this morning.”
A witness, Leigh Goldsmith, told the Isle of Wight County Press she saw the helicopter “spiralling” before crashing into a hedge as she drove along the road.
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Police have closed Shanklin Road, blocking it off with several emergency vehicles, and are warning people to avoid the area.
Northumbria Helicopters said it is “giving its full cooperation to the authorities investigating this incident”.
Joe Robertson, the MP for Isle of Wight East, said the local community was in shock.
“My heart goes out to the families of those who lost their lives in the helicopter crash outside Shanklin today,” he said in a statement. “It is very sad and tragic news during what should have been a happy Bank Holiday helicopter flight from Sandown Airport. The whole community is in shock.
“My sincere thanks to all the emergency services personnel who have been involved and to the investigators for their work ahead.”
UK
‘Tamed’ algorithms and plummeting porn views: Impact of new online safety rules revealed one month on
Sweeping new rules designed to deal with the “total Wild West” young people were experiencing online have now been in place across the UK for a month.
Ofcom’s Children’s Codes require pornography and other harmful content to be kept away from young people, either through age verification or algorithm changes.
More than half a million people have signed a petition calling for the Online Safety Act to be repealed, while ministers insist the legislation’s been a success.
So what difference have these controversial new regulations made?
‘I feel more clean’
In the days before they were enforced, Sky News spoke to a group of teenagers at a youth club in Warrington, and their experiences online were stark.
They told us about frequently stumbling across violence, pornography and harmful mental health content in their social media feeds.
One 17-year-old described seeing more harmful and inappropriate content online “than I can count”. Even a 12-year-old described being shown language that “can be quite explicit for children my age”.
So, one month later, we spoke to some of the teenagers again. The difference in what they reported was remarkable.
Ryan, 17, told us previously that the internet was a “very, very malicious” place and described frequently seeing inappropriate content.
Just one month on, he says his algorithm now seems “tamed” – although he’d still describe the internet as malicious.
“[My] algorithms have been quite tame in comparison to what they were. I haven’t seen any sort of advertisements and stuff that can be alluding towards anything inappropriate,” he said.
Liam, 16, also said Instagram felt “tamed” compared to what it was like before.
He was previously being served a lot of eating disorder content but “in the time that the rules have been in place I don’t actually think I’ve seen any”.
“I used to see them every few scrolls so it’s very much gone down.”
Young people gathered at the Warrington Youth Zone to talk to Sky News about online safety
Seventeen-year-old Indie said she now feels like she “can actually scroll on the internet worry-free of what’s going to pop up”. Abbey, 17, also said she feels less worried about scrolling now.
“I feel really good about [the new rules] because now I don’t have to worry about seeing things I don’t want to see,” she said.
Ryan, 15, previously told us he was frequently being shown violent content that would ruin his day. Now, “when I’m scrolling TikTok, I’m free from violence”, he said.
“It feels better, to be honest. I feel more clean, in a sort of way, because like, I’ve not seen it.”
Of the six teenagers we re-interviewed, only one – 15-year-old Oliver – said he hadn’t really noticed a change.
However, harmful content is still sometimes being shown to teens, we soon found out.
Self-harm content on TikTok
We decided to test the social media platforms ourselves, inspired by an experiment run by the Molly Rose Foundation (MRF) in the weeks running up to the rules being enforced.
At that time, MRF found their teen Instagram and TikTok accounts were bombarded with self-harm and suicide content.
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Sky News experimented with fake teen accounts to see whether harmful content was still available
One month later, we created TikTok and Instagram accounts belonging to a 15-year-old and searched for terms relating to suicide and self-harm.
On Instagram, all three search terms took us to a mental health support page, signposting to helplines and advice.
On TikTok, however, that wasn’t the case.
One search term took us to a mental health support page, similar to Instagram’s.
Another search term showed the message “no results”.
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Teens targeted with ‘suicide content’
But a third, relating to a specific type of self-harm, brought up numerous posts that should no longer be shown to young people under Ofcom’s guidance.
Some posts used euphemisms, others were more explicit about their content. None of it should be available to children in the UK now.
In response to our experiment, a TikTok spokesperson said:
“TikTok has designed 70+ features and settings that support the safety and well-being of teens and families on our app, and we partner with organisations such as Samaritans and the International Association for Suicide Prevention to bring well-being resources directly to our community.
“We continually enforce comprehensive Community Guidelines, with over 99% of violative content proactively removed by TikTok.
“This single account does not reflect the real experience of a teen on our platform.”
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‘Children as young as six’ finding porn
Pornography views plummet…
But a lot of the controversy about these rules hasn’t come from children. Adults use the internet too and the new age verification rules seem to have impacted the way they surf the web.
Not everyone’s happy about it.
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What are the new online rules?
In the days after the new rules came in, hundreds of thousands of people signed a petition to repeal the Online Safety Act, the legislation that underpins Ofcom’s regulations.
Despite the government responding to that petition to say it had “no plans” to repeal the act, the number of signatories has now passed half a million.
“We all want children to be safe online, but I don’t think those benefits outweigh the significant costs, not just to millions of low-abiding children and adults in the UK, but also the effect this is having elsewhere around the world,” said Matthew Feeney, advocacy manager at Big Brother Watch.
He brought up privacy concerns before the rules were introduced and says he’s still concerned, having seen them in action.
“It’s doing the UK no favours internationally,” he said. “No other liberal democracy has taken steps like this in this kind of way.
“There are ways to talk about child safety online without embracing this approach to the internet, which treats everyone as a child by default.”
In Westminster, the rules proved controversial too; when Reform leader Nigel Farage said his party would repeal the act if elected, Technology Secretary Peter Kyle responded on Sky News by saying Mr Farage was “on the side of predators”.
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Minister’s Farage comments ‘no slip of the tongue’
“Anybody who thinks this legislation is going to be perfect in this moment must think again,” said Baroness Beeban Kidron, founder of 5Rights and a longtime supporter of the new legislation.
“It should not be a conversation about attackers, detractors, defenders. What we have to do is go again, and again, and again until we get the balance right.”
One of the most obvious ways general internet use has changed since the rules came in is through pornography.
According to a recent report by the Children’s Commissioner, the world’s four largest pornography sites received nearly 11 billion visitors each month in 2020; more than the number of visitors to Amazon, LinkedIn, Netflix, Zoom and eBay combined.
But within a day of the new regulations, the number of UK visitors to pornography sites plummeted – and has stayed low.
Data given to Sky News by Similarweb showed that between 19 July and 15 August, there was a 45% drop in the number of UK users to Pornhub, the country’s most popular pornography site.
Across the top 100 sites, there was a 33% drop.
Even pornography-based forums took a hit – Subreddits linked to bondage, discipline, sadism, and masochism (BDSM), for example, are experiencing 12% fewer visits from the UK than before the rules were introduced.
But that doesn’t necessarily mean the UK has lost its appetite for adult content.
But VPN use seems to be up
At the same time as UK porn visits were plummeting, the use of virtual private networks (VPNs) was rocketing, as people bypassed new age verification pages altogether.
VPNs mask their users’ location and may mean that plenty of people were accessing porn… they just didn’t look like they were in the UK.
The number of people searching for VPNs on Google spiked dramatically in the days after the rules were introduced.
Although the interest has waned, it is still higher than pre-regulation levels.
Five out of Apple’s top 10 downloaded apps were VPNs just one day after the rules started being enforced.
Baroness Beeban doesn’t believe it is children using VPNs to bypass age verification.
“I’ve actually found it extraordinary that the assumption is that all of the VPN surge is children. Think about it carefully.
“A lot of it will be adults who are actually trying to hide their own behaviour now that you actually have to be a bit more transparent.”
Anyone feeling emotionally distressed or suicidal can call Samaritans for help on 116 123 or email jo@samaritans.org in the UK. In the US, call the Samaritans branch in your area or 1 (800) 273-TALK
A campaign encouraging people to use headphones when playing music on public transport is being rolled out in London from today.
Posters will begin appearing on the Elizabeth line on Tuesday reminding travellers not to play music out loud or to have conversations on speaker mode, as it may disturb other passengers.
It is the latest part of Transport for London’s Travel Kind campaign, which is being rolled out across the wider transport network.
Rules around train travel already make playing music out loud an offence. But like other issues, such as fare evasion, this is subject to being enforced by the British Transport Police or the train operators themselves.
People using their phones for loud content has become a political issue in recent months, with both the Liberal Democrats and Conservatives urging ministers to take action on it.
Earlier this year, the Lib Dems called for fines of up to £1,000 for “headphone dodgers” who play music out loud on buses and trains, while Tory shadow transport secretary Richard Holden said passengers should not have to “endure somebody else’s choice of crap music”.
Seb Dance, deputy mayor of London for transport, said the small minority who “play music or videos out loud can be a real nuisance to other passengers and directly disturb their journeys”.
“However Londoners spend their journey, whether catching up on their favourite series or listening to music, we want everyone to have a pleasant journey.”
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A previous Travel Kind campaign encouraged travellers to offer priority seating to those who need it. Pic: Transport for London
Posters will also encourage people to look up from their phones and to be aware that others travelling may be in need of a seat.
Previously, the Travel kind campaign included calls for vigilance about sexual harassment and urged travellers to move down inside London’s Tube carriages to ensure others can get on.
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