Bereaved family ‘devastated’ after being snubbed by landmark mental health inquiry into thousands of deaths

The parents who lost their son after mental health staff treated him with “malice” say they are devastated after they were snubbed by a public inquiry examining more than 2,000 deaths.

Darian Bankwala died in December 2020, four months after being discharged from mental health services run by Essex University Partnership Foundation Trust (EPUT). He is one of more than 2,000 mental health patients who have died unexpectedly while under the care of mental health services in Essex since January 2000.

On Monday a landmark public inquiry, chaired by Baroness Kate Lampard to investigate failures connected to the deaths, opened.

The Lampard inquiry will cover two decades and will look at patients who died in hospital and those who died within three months of their discharge from hospital.

However, Mr Bankwala’s family has been told by the inquiry they cannot be a core participant as he died four months after discharge, not three like the other cases being looked at. Mr Bankwala’s father Kobad said his family was “devasted” by the news after fighting for years for answers following his son’s death.

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“When we heard about [the statutory public inquiry], after the fighting and fighting and fighting, we were happy,” he told The Independent. “We thought at last, there’s going to be something happening, but then [now] it’s turned sour again… my family are devastated at the moment, I’m still going to fight this my way… What you see [has] just come out of the Post Office scandal, that is exactly what’s been happening within EPUT and the mental health service.”

Mr Bankwala said both he and his family cannot trust the inquiry after its decision not to allow them core participant status.

However, the solicitor to the inquiry said in an opening statement on Monday that those families who are not core participants could still be included in the inquiry team’s investigations.

Mr Bankwala, who had a mild learning disability and autism, experienced mental health problems since he was a young boy.

In February 2020, after a breakdown in his mental health led to him being taken to A&E he was admitted to EPUT’s the Linden Centre. During his time at the Linden Centre Darian was able to flee several times and was found walking in rail stations.

He was then discharged but readmitted just months later to Rochford Hospital in April 2020. Following this, on 7 July he was discharged from Rochford Hospital and given a staff member, called a care coordinator to manage him in the community. The trust did not involve the family in his discharge, according to evidence given during the inquest.

Mr Bankwala’s family said they tried to tell the trust their son’s mental health was deteriorating again following his discharge from Rochford. But the 22-year-old was found dead on 27 December 2020 after being hit by a train, just four months after he was released from hospital.

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Although an inquest did not find his death was caused by the trust it did raise concerns about his treatment, including that someone with such vulnerability was discharged to an unknown destination and there was a “disproportionate, unnecessary, and helpful fixation from clinicians and ward staff” that his mental health problem was related to substance abuse/drug-induced psychosis.

In one incident the inquest ruled comments made about him by staff before discharge were “so out of keeping with any of the evidence… seen and heard that [they indicated]… a degree of malice on the part of those in the discussion”

It added that the ward and suggested that the ward was “united in finding Darian to be something of an irritant”.

Mr Bankwala’s mother Heidi said when he was first discharged from the Linden centre they were told “he’s not bad enough to be kept in” despite his attempts to escape.

“They just didn’t seem to be concerned… I think when you first get someone sectioned, you have it in your head that they’re going to be really safe. You never envisage that, then they’re not safe,” she said.

Describing his behaviour after discharge, Ms Bankwala said: “You couldn’t do anything. It was, it was like that person wasn’t there… He would lunge at me. He would sort of blame me and my husband, Kobad. I had bottles launched at me. I had knives pretty much stuck in my face.

“You love that person so much, you’re so worried about them, because you know they’re not going to kill you, if anything, they’re going to kill themselves. They’re so ill, they don’t know they’re ill, and you can’t get through to them…

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“It’s still an immense shock. It’s so traumatic. You can’t understand, even now, nearly four years later.”

In a statement, the Lampard Inquiry said: “We give our deepest condolences to the family of Darian Bankwala and whilst we cannot comment on individual cases, Darian’s experience highlights the urgent need for the Lampard Inquiry and its investigation into mental health inpatient care in Essex…The Lampard Inquiry is actively encouraging those personally affected by the issues it is investigating to make contact with the Inquiry and is committed to working with families and friends of those who have died.”

Paul Scott, chief executive of EPUT, said: “Our deepest condolences remain with Darian’s family, friends and loved ones at this difficult time.

“Since 2020 action has been taken to ensure patient risk assessments are regularly reviewed, discharge plans better reflect individual needs and there is stronger communication between inpatient and community teams.”