Full details of the Serious Case Review (SCR), commissioned by South Gloucestershire’s Safeguarding Adults Boardfollowing reports of patient abuse at Winterbourne Private Hospital last year, are now available on South Gloucestershire Council’s website:
http://www.southglos.gov.uk/NR/exeres/DDE51D39-E8AC-4343-8DDA-7F08B03CBA10
The Conclusions (Section 7) of of the Executive Summary are as follows:
“The origins of Winterbourne View Hospital were not based on a local population needs assessment. Castlebeck Ltd spotted a business opportunity and were not discouraged by NHS commissioners. They had indicated their willingness to buy its services irrespective of national policy and guidance. The Review confirms that the apparatus of oversight across sectors was unequal to the task of uncovering the fact and extent of abuses and crimes at the hospital”