BBC News: Monitor to launch inquiry into Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust

NHS regulator Monitor is to launch an inquiry into the mental health trust for Norfolk and Suffolk after concerns were raised over its finances.

Monitor said it would look into whether Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust (NSFT) had breached the terms of its licence over its £1.72m deficit.

The inquiry follows a Care Quality Commission (CQC) inspection.

In a letter to the NSFT, seen by the BBC, Laura Mills, deputy regional director of Monitor, said it had been decided to start the investigation due to the “deterioration in the trust’s financial position” and feedback from the CQC inspection in October.

‘Issues have escalated’

Ms Mills says in the second quarter of 2014-15 the trust had a planned deficit of £290,000 but reported a deficit of £1.72m.

The NSFT has been open about its financial position and told the BBC last month it was predicting a £2m deficit by the end of 2014.

Ms Mills also said an external review of the trust’s management structures found a “number of areas that could be improved”.

“Monitor is concerned about how these issues have escalated and whether they could indicate a governance failure and a potential breach of the trust’s licence,” she said.

A spokesman for the Campaign to Save Mental Health Services in Norfolk and Suffolk said: “It is vital that those who depend on mental health services do not pay the price of underfunding of NSFT.

“If mental health had enjoyed the same increase in funding as physical health since 2010, NSFT would have an annual budget £30m higher than it does today.

“Mental health services in Norfolk and Suffolk need money not soundbites.”

To read the full story on the BBC News wesbite click on the image below:

BBC News Monitor to launch inquiry into Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust

8 thoughts on “BBC News: Monitor to launch inquiry into Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust”

  1. It’s all very well Michael Scott demanding parity of funding but that’s just half the battle faced by staff and patients of NSFT. It could be rich as Croesus but, with a lack of skills, experience, and all round competence at the top, what money’s coming in is squandered on crackpot schemes and over inflated salaries for the senior team.

  2. Precisely, if they had not thrown massive amounts of time,money and morale on the radical redesign there might be a fighting chance but when the top level management shoot the trust in the foot with a bazooka it was only going one way. My question is when are these managers going to face some kind of consequences for their rank incompetence?

  3. there are too many tiers of management, and too many new initiatives. the trust is now a bottomless money pit, good money thrown after bad. quick fixes and knee jerk reactions are the norm. nsft needs a few effective managers, get rid of the band 8s, let the band 7s manage their areas, and put the savings to good use. staffing is a mess, use of nhsp is ineffective, but the regular staff are not wanting to stay so the trust is haemorraging staff and money.

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