Dr Minh Alexander retired consultant psychiatrist 24 April 2025
I have continued work on NHS England’s questionable handling of mental health homicides by looking at the bed shortage, which poses risk to patients, their families and the public, and the government’s approach to it.
There is shortage of complete and reliable official safety data on mental health services and a range of sources have to be examined.
Because of the unsatisfactory data by the NHS, I sorted through hundreds of coroner’s Prevention of Future Deaths reports issued on mental health deaths since April 2019 and these gave a picture of recurring failures, which points to systemic safety issues.
I have produced a report on the mental health bed shortage, the underlying issues and the consequences. The report is lengthy but for those in a hurry, the salient facts and my conclusions are contained in the summary and the conclusions. The supporting evidence in between is indexed, so it is possible to pick out areas that may be more useful to some readers.
This is the report.
RELATED ITEMS
The government has announced a small cut in the proportion of spending on mental health. This is on top of years of proportionately lower spending on mental health.
Mental Health: Expected Spend for 2025-26 Statement made on 27 March 2025
The government announced on 22 April 2025 that it intends to hold a statutory public inquiry into the mental health homicides and attempted murders in Nottingham, which will be chaired by a retired circuit judge, HH Deborah Taylor:
“Resident Judge at Southwark Crown Court and Recorder of Westminster until her retirement from the Judiciary in December 2022. In 2022 she was Treasurer of Inner Temple, where she advocated for greater diversity at the Bar.
Deborah will continue in her role as Chair of the Criminal Legal Aid Advisory Board which she has held since July 2023.”
The terms of reference for this statutory inquiry have not yet been published.
Alexander's Excavations 
More shocking factsWill any campaigns and leading professionals and MPs coalesce around a political campaign for change? Even airing this horrific reality and then responding?What else can be done A friend of ours took his life as I believe he couldn’t face going through the psychiatric system. Yet again. No asylum available anywhereBest wishesRichard
Yahoo Mail: Search, organise, conquer
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