MIDDLESBROUGH — A statutory public inquiry into care failures at the Tees, Esk and Wear Valleys NHS Foundation Trust (TEWV) was announced in December, but as of March 31, key details including the chair, start date, and location remained unconfirmed. The inquiry follows multiple deaths by suicide of teenagers under the trust’s care, including Christie Harnett, 17; Nadia Sharif, 17; and Emily Moore, 18, who died within an eight-month period ending in February 2020.

An independent inquiry commissioned by NHS England published its main report in 2023, examining the treatment of young people at the trust. It found excessive and inappropriate use of restraint, staff instructions not to intervene during self-harm episodes, and managerial tolerance of these failures. The mental health unit where Christie Harnett and former patient Laura Kenny were treated was later described in the report as “chaotic and unsafe.”

Laura Kenny, who spent much of her time from age 13 as an in-patient at West Lane Hospital in Middlesbrough—now Acklam Road Hospital—said patients had repeatedly warned authorities about deteriorating conditions. “We knew somebody would die and nobody listened,” Kenny said. She added, “We'd been warning everyone. We wrote letters to everyone we could think of saying one of us is going to die.” Kenny reported that staff would either shout at patients or ignore incidents of self-harm, with their response often limited to restraint or sedation.

Michael Harnett, Christie Harnett’s stepfather, described similar experiences, stating, “They would literally just pin her down, sedate her, put her in bed, and then that was it.” He said that after Christie woke up from sedation, staff would not discuss the self-harm incident with her, even if she was still covered in blood.

Alistair Smith of Ison Harrison Solicitors, representing affected families, expressed concern about delays. “While our clients appreciate these things take time, they are worried about the continued care being offered by a trust under scrutiny and how, in three months, there appears to be no firm developments,” he said.