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Autistic man locked away in hospital’s old file room at cost of ￡20k a week

2022-01-03 00:00:00.0 太阳报-英国新闻原网页

A YOUNG autistic man is being kept locked away in a hospital’s old file room.

The 24-year-old is detained under the Mental Health Act. His only contact with the outside world is through a hatch in the wall.

A young autistic man is being kept locked away in an old file room at Cheadle Royal Hospital, in Greater Manchester

He has been housed at Cheadle Royal Hospital, in Greater Manchester, for more than four years after his behaviour was deemed too challenging.

The man, who is constantly monitored by CCTV cameras, has his own clinical team as well as five care assistants.

Despite the ￡20,000-a-week cost to the NHS, he is barely allowed any contact with staff and has not been in the same room as family members since April last year, the Sunday Times reported.

His family is preparing to launch a legal battle in the Court of Protection to have him released.

His mum, Nicola Cassidy, 49, from Liverpool, said: “He’s being treated terribly. He needs to be in a home, not in a hospital. What care and treatment are they giving my son through a serving hatch?”

She describes the living space as “life in a box” and says it includes his bedroom, a bathroom and a small lounge area.

Her son is one of 700 autistic people being held in a secure hospital in England — a figure that has risen by 59 per cent since 2015.

Cheadle Royal Hospital is part of the Priory group, which said care was kept under constant review to ensure the “least restrictive setting”.