Care home at centre of new Panorama undercover scandal says mistreatment was an "isolated incident"

A press release from Ash Court Care Home, the Camden home that was the focus of yesterday evening’s Panorama documentary, has accepted that “great distress” was caused while expressing confidence in the wider team of staff who work at the home.

The abuse of a woman diagnosed with Alzheimer’s was recorded secretly by the daughter of the resident, resulting in a jail sentence for a former male carer, as well as the suspension of four female carers.

Looking to restore faith in the care home’s service, a spokesperson for Ash Court said: “This was an isolated incident, as demonstrated by thorough investigations by the police, London Borough of Camden and the Care Quality Commission alike, and it is an important reminder that an individual who has been provided with all the appropriate training may still commit a criminal act even in the most professionally run and highly regulated environment.”

The spokesperson went on to highlight the home’s record: “The wider staff team at Ash Court have provided many years of excellent care and were shocked by the truly unacceptable behaviour of these individuals. It is important to note that every member of staff at Ash Court receives comprehensive training and this was also the case for the individuals identified in the footage, which makes their actions doubly distressing.”

In response to the revelations, many charities and care professionals have called once again for speedy government action to implement care reform. Alzheimer’s Society director of external affairs, Andrew Chidgey, said: “The case of abuse that happened is a disgrace and must never be allowed to happen again. It is absolutely right that the person at the centre of abuse has been sent to jail. Despite the tremendous work by a large number of care providers and care staff there are still far too many examples of poor practice. It is time for a root and branch reform of how we provide care in this country.”

Mr Chidgey went on to ask that all care homes sign up to the Prime Minister’s ‘Dementia Challenge’, and that the regulator for care services in England, the Care Quality Commission, reintroduce public ratings for care homes: “People with dementia, their carers and families deserve the best care possible. It’s a tragedy that the news today will have made it harder for people with dementia and carers to consider care as a good option when in many cases it can be a positive experience.”

Director general of Age UK, Michelle Mitchell, asked that care service remain vigilant to poor standards: “Cases such as these will inevitably worry people living in care homes and their loved ones. Every single case of abuse or neglect in care homes is one too many and any suspicion or accusation of abuse, neglect or improper care must be taken seriously and immediately acted upon in the first instance by the management of the home.”