The bizarre story of a fake carer – and what it says about the UK’s care industry
She seemed perfect, at first. Her CV brimmed with all kinds of qualifications. And she had years of experience caring for vulnerable people.
As Sarah Whitaker sat at her kitchen table and looked through the paperwork the care agency had sent her, she knew that Tracy was the one she could trust to look after David, her 89-year-old dad.
Retired businessman David Seal suffered a stroke in the summer and needed more and more support at home.
He was taking a daily cocktail of strong prescription medicines and also needed help emptying his catheter bag because going to the toilet had become difficult recently.
“We need somebody experienced in stroke management and catheter care,” said Sarah. “But we also needed somebody who could drive my dad to the town and back. And somebody who was a very good cook.
“My dad chose Tracy and she arrived the next day.”
Sarah was sent Tracy’s CV and profile by Hampshire-based Access Care
Tracy came by train and, on the journey to David’s home, revealed that she could not drive because there was a problem with her licence.
Sarah saw this as a red flag. But that wasn’t all she was worried about.
“We had to teach her how to open and close the catheter because she had never seen one before. And that was a surprise given her experience.”
It got worse. Tracy couldn’t cook and once served David deep-fried Brussels sprouts for lunch. Sarah was increasingly concerned about the carer’s medicine management skills too.
“She was giving dad pills here there and everywhere. And that’s a problem because if you give my dad a pill, he’ll swallow it. Whatever it is.”
This was far removed from the carer she had read so much about.
Sarah was introduced to Tracy through an introductory care agency, Hampshire-based Access Care. When Sarah got in touch about her concerns, the agency said they were confused too.
They had never had any complaints about Tracy. She was the model carer.
And then one sunny day in early September, as David was being pushed around the village in his wheelchair by his grandchildren, one of them pulled out a mobile phone to capture the happy scene.
“As soon as Tracy saw the camera she stepped out of view as quick as a flash,” said Sarah. “And later my daughter said that it seemed odd that she didn’t want to be on camera.”
The woman who was looking after David Seal did not want to be pictured
Sarah rang the care agency again, who supplied her with a copy of Tracy’s driving licence. She looked at the video again.
“The image we had from the walk and the person in the driving licence photo were two different people.”
The next morning, Tracy – or whoever she was – packed her bags and left.
Sarah was horrified. She was left wondering who had been in her father’s house for nearly three weeks. It started to fit into place; the shoddy catheter care, the bad cooking and the poor handling of medicines.
She contacted the care agency again, who promptly contacted Tracy, who was adamant that she had been in the house caring for David.
Access Care contacted Hampshire Police. But the response was not what they expected.
A police constable replied on 4 November with disappointing news. They explained that officers had “limited lines of enquiry” and that because Tracy had denied the allegation, they would need an “independent witness” to confirm the allegation.
They seemed to be saying that they would not investigate, adding that it would be deemed “not in the public interest” to send a police officer to interview Tracy in person at her home, despite having her address.
Sarah said she only found out later that ‘Tracy’ was ‘two different people’
The police were clearly not interested and showed no signs of investigating. So as part of our investigation into this story, we tracked down Tracy to an address and decided to pay her a visit. To get her side of the story.
I arrived at a large housing estate and saw Tracy backing her car into the drive at the back. I approached her and said I wanted to speak to her about her work as a carer in David’s home.
At first, she said that she had worked very hard to provide the best care but that the family were not happy. She was very clear that she had lived in the home for nearly three weeks. No question about it.
But when I confronted Tracy with the photo evidence from the sunny village walk, her tone changed. She took in deep breath and sighed.
“I don’t know how to explain this,” she said slowly. “It’s so bad. Very bad. I’m sorry.”
Tracy admitted to Sky News she sent a friend to care for David
Tracy explained to me that she had asked a friend to do the care job in her place, admitting that her friend was not a trained carer. She said nobody had forced her to do it and she had never done anything like this in the past.
She said she thought she could get away with it because the care agency never checked up on her.
“They [the agency] never met me face to face. They have to do more checks to know who is going in the house.”
The real Tracy said her care agency never checked in on her
I show Sarah the video of Tracy and her astonishing admission. “She was knowingly complicit and sent an untrained carer – a complete stranger – into the house of a vulnerable elderly man who is very ill. The nerve of the woman!”
Sarah did some research and reached out to the care regulator, the Care Quality Commission (CQC). But to her surprise, they said they could not help.
They don’t regulate introductory care agencies like the one Sarah used to hire Tracy.
“I thought it was absolutely incredible that the CQC were not involved and I was very surprised to discover that agencies like this send carers all over the the place but aren’t regulated in any way.”
Fully managed care is regulated by the CQC, while introductory agencies – like Access Care – use self-employed carers
One of the reasons why the deception was picked up on so quickly is that Sarah lives next door to her dad. And so, we got around to talk to David and I asked him how he felt about having a stranger looking after him.
“I feel very cross about it. I feel fooled and misled,” he said. But David is also clear about another point: regulation. Or lack of it.
“There’s no point in being responsible for the care industry if you’re only dealing with people who are registered with you. It is quite pointless.”
A spokesperson for the Care Quality Commission told Sky News: “We appreciate the distress this incident has caused both Mr Seal and Mrs Whitaker, however as neither introductory agencies or self-employed carers are covered by CQC’s remit we are unable to take action in this case.
“These matters should be reported in the first instance to the local authority safeguarding team who have the remit to investigate the issue and take necessary action.
“Any questions regarding the legal framework for how health and social care is regulated in England is a matter for the government.”
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David said CQC not regulating the introductory agencies is ‘pointless’
The care sector is big business. Home care services are worth over £12bn per year and rising, according to healthcare analysts LaingBuisson.
The government has written to Chief Executives of adult social care services telling them of their so-called ‘home first’ approach to healthcare, which supports people to live independently at home rather than being cared for in hospital. Just like the kind of care David was receiving.
And as winter comes and pressure increases on the NHS, these kinds of services are relied on more than ever.
“If you can’t guarantee that the person you’re expecting is the person you get then I think the system is very flawed,” Sarah tells me.
A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson told Sky News: “Our sympathies are with David’s family and friends in this deeply concerning case.
“This government inherited a social care system in crisis. We are committed to building a National Care Service – underpinned by national standards and delivered locally – to improve the consistency of care and ensure everyone can live an independent and dignified life.”
“A healthy NHS and social care system requires strong regulation to ensure patient and user safety and that’s why we are reforming the Care Quality Commission to make sure it is fit for purpose.”
Access Care CEO Tiggy Bradshaw also told Sky News: “We were shocked to hear of this terrible deception and are deeply sorry for what Mr Seal and his family have experienced.
“When we heard of these alarming allegations, we contacted Action Fraud and the police and commenced an urgent safeguarding review. We have been in close touch with the family throughout and will continue to collaborate with the police.
“We have strict protocols in place however these extremely unusual circumstances have given us cause for reflection.
“We are in the process of developing further security checks and procedures for families in receipt of care at home.”
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Several days after approaching Hampshire Police for comment, a spokesperson told us they were looking into the case, adding: “Officers are carrying out a number of enquiries and the incident is still under investigation to determine whether any crimes have been committed.”
Sarah meanwhile says she has been left deeply concerned by the incident.
‘If the system can be played this easily, then the system needs to change,’ Sarah said
“We knew nothing about this person who was in my dad’s home. For all I know she could have been an axe murderer,” she told Sky News.
“The fact that the carer was able to get away with it for as long as she did put the entire system in doubt.
“If the system can be played this easily, then the system needs to change.”
Changes to how death certificates are issued in England and Wales have made the grieving process more “stressful”, according to bereaved families.
Anne Short died on New Year’s Eve, only a few months after she was diagnosed with cancer.
Her son Elliot, 30, from Newport, South Wales, says the grieving process was made harder after having to wait eight weeks to hold her funeral.
“Quite frankly, it’s ridiculous, when you’re already going through all this pain and suffering as a family,” he told Sky News.
“You can’t move on, you can’t do anything, you can’t arrange anything, you can’t feel that they’re at peace, you can’t put yourself at peace, because of a process that’s been put in that nobody seems to know anything about at the moment.”
That process has been introduced by the government to address “concerns” about how causes of death were previously scrutinised, following high-profile criminal cases such as those of Harold Shipman and Lucy Letby.
Up until last September, causes of death could be signed off by a GP, but now they have to be independently scrutinised by a medical examiner, before a death certificate can be issued.
Anne Short
‘I felt helpless’
Mr Short said he was ringing “twice a day” for a progress update, but that it was “going through too many sets of hands”.
Until the death certificate was issued, Ms Short’s body could not be released into the care of the funeral director.
“The main stress for me was knowing that she was up there [at the hospital] and I couldn’t move her, so I felt helpless, powerless,” he said.
“I felt like I’d let her down in a lot of ways. I know now, looking back, that there’s nothing that we could have done, but at the time it was adding a lot of stress. I just wanted her out of there.”
Elliot Short had to wait eight weeks to hold his mother’s funeral
‘Something has to be done’
Mr Short fears there’s a risk the new process might defeat its purpose.
“There’s other people that I know that have lost since, where it’s been in a care home or something like that, where they haven’t been happy with the care they’ve had, but they haven’t raised that because you’re in this bubble of grief and you just want to get it done,” he said.
“Something has to be done about that because I think it just drags on the grief and there’s obviously a danger then of it being against the reasons why they’re trying to do it.”
Arrangements after the death of his father less than two years ago was a “much easier process”, according to Mr Short.
“I lost my father as well 15 months before, so we went through the process prior to this coming in and we had the death certificate, he died at home, but we had it within three days,” he added.
Elliot Short
‘State of limbo’
James Tovey is the sixth generation of his family running Tovey Bros, a funeral director in Newport.
He told Sky News that the delays were having a “huge impact” on the business and that the families they serve were being “left in a state of limbo” for weeks after their bereavement.
“I would say that most funerals will take place perhaps two to four weeks after the person’s passed away, whereas now it’s much more like four to six weeks, so it is quite a significant difference,” he said.
“It’s one thing on top of an already distressing time for them and we’re frustrated and upset for [the families] as much as anybody else and it’s just annoying that we can’t do anything about it.”
James Tovey
Mr Tovey said that the reform was “very useful” and he remained supportive of it.
“It’s just the delays. I’m sure they can do something about that over time, but it’s just waiting for that to happen, and I wish that could be addressed sooner rather than later,” he added.
“It does put pressure on other people, it’s not just ourselves, it’s pressure on the hospitals, on crematoria, on the registrar service and everyone else involved in our profession.
“But of course all of us we’re there to serve the families, and we’re just upset for them and wish we could do more to help.”
The organisation representing funeral directors has called for “urgent action”
The National Association of Funeral Directors said some areas of England and Wales are experiencing much shorter delays than others, but has called for “urgent action”.
Rachel Bradburne, its director of external affairs, said the system was “introduced for all the right reasons” but that it was “not working as well as we need it to”.
“Funeral directors are relaying stories of delays, frustration, and bottlenecks on a daily basis, and urgent action is required to review and recalibrate the new system,” she added.
‘Unintended consequences’
Dr Roger Greene is the deputy chief executive of bereavement charity AtALoss.
He told Sky News that the delays were “one of the unintended consequences of what’s a well-intended reform of a system”.
“What has actually happened is that the number of deaths now requiring independent scrutiny has trebled,” he said.
“So in England and Wales in 2023, the last full year of data, there were nearly 200,000 deaths reported to a coroner, whereas there were 600,000 deaths.
“Now, what is the change in the process is that all deaths now need to be reported for independent scrutiny.”
Dr Roger Greene
Dr Greene said there may be ways the system could be “tweaked a little bit”, such as giving medical examiners the ability to issue an interim death certificate.
“We believe that people can process grief well if they’re given the opportunity and they’ve got a proper understanding,” he added.
“But the systems that we have in the country need to be able to work as well with that diversity of faith and culture.”
‘Vital improvements’
Jason Shannon, lead medical examiner for Wales, told Sky News he recognised “the importance of a seamless, accurate and timely death certification process”.
“Medical examiners are one part of the wider death certification process and were introduced to give additional independent safeguards as well as to give bereaved people a voice, which they hadn’t had before,” he added.
“Medical examiners have no role in determining where the body of a family’s relative is cared for and except in a minority of deaths where a coroner needs to be involved, that decision should be one that a family is fully empowered to make in a way that is best for them.”
A Welsh government spokesperson said they “would like to apologise to any families who have experienced delays in receiving death certificates”.
The government said it was working with the lead medical examiner and the NHS in Wales “to understand where the delays are” and how to provide bereaved families with “additional support”.
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A spokesperson for the Department of Health and Social Care said it recognised there were “some regional variations in how long it takes to register a death”.
They added that the changes to the death certification process “support vital improvements to patient safety and aim to provide comfort and clarity to the bereaved”.
Social media influencers are fuelling a rise in misogyny and sexism in the UK’s classrooms, according to teachers.
More than 5,800 teachers were polled as part of the survey by the NASUWT teaching union, and nearly three in five (59%) of teachers said they believe social media use has contributed to a deterioration in pupils’ behaviour.
The findings have been published during the union’s annual conference, which is taking place in Liverpool this weekend.
One motion that is set to be debated at the conference calls on the union’s executive to work with teachers “to assess the risk that far-right and populist movements pose to young people”.
Andrew Tate was referenced by a number of teachers who took part in the survey, who said he had negative influence on male pupils.
One teacher said she’d had 10-year-old boys “refuse to speak to [her]…because [she is] a woman”.
Another teacher said “the Andrew Tate phenomena had a huge impact on how [pupils at an all-boys school] interacted with females and males they did not see as ‘masculine'”.
While another respondent to the survey said their school had experienced some incidents of “derogatory language towards female staff…as a direct result of Andrew Tate videos”.
Last month, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer hosted a discussion in Downing Street on how to prevent young boys from being dragged into a “whirlpool of hatred and misogyny”.
The talks were with the creators of Netflix drama Adolescence, which explored so-called incel culture.
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‘An urgent need for action’
Patrick Roach, the union’s general secretary, said “misogyny, racism and other forms of prejudice and hatred…are not a recent phenomenon”.
He said teachers “cannot be left alone to deal with these problems” and that a “multi-agency response” was needed.
“There is an urgent need for concerted action involving schools, colleges and other agencies to safeguard all children and young people from the dangerous influence of far-right populists and extremists,” Mr Roach added.
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A spokesperson for the Department for Education (DfE) said: “Education can be the antidote to hate, and the classroom should be a safe environment for sensitive topics to be discussed and where critical thinking is encouraged.
“That’s why we provide a range of resources to support teachers to navigate these challenging issues, and why our curriculum review will look at the skills children need to thrive in a fast-changing online world.”
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