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a mental health Charity which receives £206m a year to care for NHS patients is facing threats from two police officers An investigation follows the death of one patient and the alleged assault of another, independent can be revealed.
Northampton Private St Andrew’s Hospital Serves more than 400 hospitalized patients In February 2025, the hospital, which provides beds for patients suffering from brain injuries and mental health problems such as eating disorders and psychosis, was investigated for alleged corporate manslaughter. Five people were arrested, but four were released with no further action. A man remains on bail on suspicion of willful negligence by a paramedic.
In a separate police investigation, eight nursing staff were arrested on suspicion of willful neglect and abuse after assaulting a patient in July 2025.
The latest investigation follows another corporate manslaughter investigation following the death of a teenage girl in hospital in October 2024, which led to the arrest of one person.
Northampton Police said the Crown Prosecution Service has since decided not to take further action in the case and the arrestee has been released with no further action. A report into the incident will be prepared for the coroner prior to the inquest.
The hospital came under scrutiny last summer after the Care Quality Commission (CQC) watchdog inspected CCTV that appeared to show staff assaulting patients.
An inspection report published by the regulator in December said it had received seven allegations of staff assaulting patients between July and August 2025.
It also received accusations of intimidation and bullying. Two other patients told the CQC they would “rather go to jail” than hospital.
After the inspection, the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine gave the hospital an “unqualified” rating and issued an enforcement notice, meaning the hospital could not accept new patients.
The CQC said in its report: “We found evidence of a hospital-wide closed culture that led to inappropriate and abusive treatment of staff and patients. We took urgent enforcement action to impose conditions on providers’ registration to limit new admissions across the hospital.”
In May 2024, a coroner criticized Northampton Hospital for the suicide of 16-year-old Grace Smith, who committed suicide at the hospital in 2022. The coroner ruled that staff contributed to her death by failing to consider her risk of suicide when they reduced the number of times they checked on her.
In 2020, St Andrew’s Healthcare Charity, which runs the hospital, closed the children’s ward at the hospital due to a series of safety concerns and a significant CQC report. Prior to this, in 2019, the organization faced a high-profile scandal in which a 17-year-old autistic person was locked alone in a room for nearly two years.
St Andrew’s Healthcare is a registered charity that provides inpatient mental health services at four hospitals in Northampton, Birmingham and Essex and will receive £206m a year from NHS contracts in 2023-24.
Northampton Hospital is one of the leading providers of adult mental health beds to the NHS, receiving patients from across the country. The average cost per bed is £685 per day in 2023-24, with at least £3.6 million received from the NHS for patients People who cannot receive treatment locally.
This does not include the cost of specialist beds it provides to the NHS, such as for deaf patients with mental health needs.
A spokesman for Northamptonshire Police confirmed the force’s investigation, saying detectives from the CID and its Major Crime Team had been involved in the investigation into several incidents alleged to have occurred at St Andrew’s Hospital in Northampton.
A spokesman said: “An investigation was conducted following the death of a teenage girl in October 2024 following the death of a corporate manslaughter and gross negligence manslaughter. Following a rigorous review of the evidence and consultation with the Crown Prosecution Service, it was decided that no further action would be taken in this incident. An individual was arrested in connection with this investigation but has been released with no further action.”
“A further eight people have been arrested on suspicion of willful neglect and abuse by care staff in relation to an allegation of assault which occurred in July 2025. This complex investigation is ongoing and all eight people arrested remain on bail.”
“Further investigations into the death of a man in February 2025 are continuing. Five people have been arrested on suspicion of corporate manslaughter and gross negligence manslaughter. Four people have been released with no further action taken against them, while one remains on bail on suspicion of willful neglect of a paramedic.
“Due to the nature of the investigation, we remain in contact with the Care Quality Commission, the independent regulator for health and social care. We continue to work tirelessly to establish what happened in each incident and ask anyone who may have any information that could assist us to contact us on 101.”
A spokesman for St Andrew’s Hospital said: “Patient safety is St Andrew’s Healthcare’s top priority and we have an urgent action plan to enhance the quality of care we provide.
“As a charity we are committed to complete transparency and have a zero-tolerance approach to any allegations of harm or poor practice. We immediately report these cases to the police, notify the Care Quality Commission and launch an internal investigation.
“Following independent investigations, police concluded that one of the cases required no further action and closed it. The remaining cases remain with the police. It is the police – and not St Andrews -‘s responsibility to determine these findings following a thorough, independent investigation.”
An NHS Midlands spokesperson said: “The NHS is working closely with the Care Quality Commission and Northamptonshire Police to address the unacceptable standards of care at St Andrew’s Healthcare and take appropriate enforcement action.
“An intensive improvement program is underway, including reviewing each patient’s care, monitoring staffing levels and conducting regular site inspections.”
The Department of Health and Social Care has expressed support for the action being taken by NHS England and the Care Quality Commission.