The organisation in charge of mental health services around Wiltshire and the wider region has paid out more than £2.5 million to patients due to poor care.

Figures obtained by the Medical Negligence Assist found that the significant sum came from 18 mental health negligence claims settled during the last five years up to April 2024, with damages totalling £2,759,798 as well as £402,234 in NHS legal costs and £1,885,572 towards claimants’ legal costs.

Overall, 29 incidents within the trust were reported to NHS Resolution which handles negligence cases on behalf of the health service.

The trust operates services across Bath, Somerset, Swindon, Wiltshire and Bristol.

The Care Quality Commission rated the trust as Requires Improvement following a surprise inspection in January 2024 and found that patient’s care was being negatively impacted by staff shortages at secure mental health wards.

Inspectors said “little had been done” to improve people’s care since their previous inspection in July 2023.

It advised the trust “must improve after an over-reliance on agency staff,” who were not familiar with people’s individual needs.

The NHS as a whole has paid out at least £121m in mental health and psychiatry negligence claims in the last five years.

That includes £51m over claims related to death, £28m for claims relating to failures or delays in treatment and a further £18m over claims related to self-harm.

Fatalities were the most common reason for mental health negligence claims made against the NHS, with 1,127 claims and incidents of death lodged against trusts since 2019 with 457 of these settled through awarded damages totalling £51.2m.

Other common injuries resulting from clinical negligence in mental health or psychiatry services included brain damage, psychological damage, lower amputation and spinal damage.

An Avon and Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust spokesperson said: “Our focus is on minimising any instances where care doesn’t meet the high standards our patients should expect.

“Whenever concerns are raised, we aim to work with patients and families to try and resolve these fairly, to address concerns quickly, and to learn the lessons which help us improve the services we provide.”

The costs of the Clinical Negligence Scheme for Trusts run by NHS Resolution are met by membership contributions.

When a claim is made against a member of CNST, NHS Resolution take over full responsibility for handling the claim and meeting the associated costs, which means that budgets for local services aren’t impacted.