CHILD and adolescent mental health wards at an NHS Trust have been rated as requiring improvement by the Care Quality Commission.

The wards are overseen by the Essex Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust and include St Aubyn Centre in Colchester.

The inspection was carried out to assess whether improvements had been made to the service after significant shortcomings were found at a previous inspection in May and June 2021.

This led to CQC rating the service inadequate and placing restrictions on it.

The latest inspection found improvements had been made, with improved staffing levels and better leadership having a positive impact right across the service.

Craig Howarth, head of hospital inspection at the Care Quality Commission, said: “I am pleased to see improvements have been made to the service, but there is still work to be done to ensure every child and young person using it receives the right care and support.

“Our inspection found that there were now enough staff to safely care for people, but some children and young people told us they didn’t always know those caring for them, which made them uncomfortable. Some hadn’t met their named nurses at all.”

Due to the progress inspectors found, the service’s rating moves from inadequate to requires improvement overall and the restrictions put on the service have now been removed.

It also moves from inadequate to requires improvement for being safe and well-led. The rating for how caring the service is has improved from inadequate to good.

The service was not previously rated for being effective or responsive to people’s needs, due to insufficient evidence.

However, it has been rated good for being effective and requires improvement for being responsive following the latest inspection.

Paul Scott, CEO of Essex Partnership University Trust said: “It’s good news that we’ve improved the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS) over the last year and have seen this reflected in a new Care Quality Commission rating and the lifting of restrictions on admissions. 

“I’d like to thank the CQC for their positive and constructive report – only by working with others, like CQC, can we learn so that we continually improve the service and care that we give the young people who rely on us.”

The full report can be found by visiting bit.ly/3ScF8Vu.