Families of patients who lost their lives while under the care of Tees, Esk and Wear Valleys mental health trust after a "catalogue of failures" have written an open letter to the Prime Minister in a desperate plea for a public inquiry.

The trust has responded to the letter. Their full response is below: 

"We felt it was important to respond to the Northern Echo’s open letter to the Prime Minister. The statistics included don’t represent the full picture of the communities we serve, which includes a population of almost two million people across County Durham, Darlington, Tees Valley and most of North Yorkshire.

"We have met with the families who have signed the letter at various times, and all have their own personal story. Our hearts go out to each and every one of them.

"Where there have been failings, we have accepted them, apologised profusely, taken responsibility as a trust and made the necessary improvements.

"We have been, and will continue to be, under intense scrutiny and that is entirely right. The independent reports into the tragic events at the former West Lane Hospital ran to nearly 1,000 pages and left no stone unturned.

"However, public inquiries are a matter for government, and the government has already decided against a specific public inquiry into this trust. Should that change for any reason, we will obviously co-operate.

"We are happy to be judged on our performance, but statistics that the Northern Echo reported, can and do paint a misleading picture. These statistics aren’t just numbers, they are people and there is important context missing. 

"As a trust, we face two major challenges.

"Firstly, there has been a huge increase in demand for mental health services, particularly amongst young people, placing a significant strain on services. Sadly, this is a national issue. For instance, between 2017 and 2022, rates increased from around one in eight young people aged 7-16, to more than one in six. For those aged 17-19, rates increased from one in 10 young adults, to one in four. 

"Secondly, the communities we serve are diverse and include some of the most deprived neighbourhoods in England. This contributes to some of the country’s poorest social, physical, and mental health and our services therefore need to meet increased and more complex demand. Rural areas and isolation also contribute significantly for some of our communities.

"As the Northern Echo reported itself (on Tuesday, May 14) Middlesbrough is one of the unhealthiest towns in England. In another recent report, the top five boroughs for so-called “deaths of despair” – those linked to alcohol and substance abuse issues and suicide – were listed. Of those five, three – Middlesbrough, Hartlepool and Redcar and Cleveland – are covered by this trust. Sadly the North East has the highest rate of suicide in England (12.8 deaths per 100,000 people).

"These facts serve as a stark reminder.

"In the period reported by the Northern Echo, our trust has actually doubled the population that we provide services to. There are also other factors such as the number of deaths reported includes end of life care and some physical health, which does have an impact on the figures and makes it impossible, indeed inaccurate to compare in this way.

"We are not making excuses, however like-for-like comparisons and statistics can be misleading.

"Whilst we know there is more to do, we want to assure your readers there has been a huge amount of work done to improve people’s experience of our trust.

"Our regulator, the Care Quality Commission, places this trust under regular and intense scrutiny. In its last report, the CQC acknowledged that leaders at all levels had ensured that improvements were made since its previous inspection across our 11 core services, seven of which were rated ‘good’.

"In the last year, we’ve recruited over 150 newly qualified nurses, increased our peer support workers by 27%, who sit alongside our patients and their families to make sure their voices are heard, we’ve established a new complaints service focused on early resolution and actionable learning and had a laser focus on improving patient safety.

"Working with partners in our communities we’ve also been involved in a wide range of projects to support suicide prevention and getting help early, including the expansion of mental health support teams in schools.

"We fully understand the families’ concerns and support will always be available to them. 

"We are committed to the ongoing transformation of our services, and our hardworking staff continue to improve the experience of our patients and their carers."