Health · Mental Health · 17 hrs ago

A mother describes life visiting her son at Rampton high-security hospital

A mother describes life visiting her son at Rampton high-security hospital

Jan Neate’s son, Jake, has been held at Rampton high-security hospital in Nottinghamshire for eight years.

He was diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia and, in 2017, killed his partner, Suzanne Brown; he was deemed unfit to stand trial.

Visits involve security checks, and Neate says she and Jake often cry when they hug.

She says he has been placed in seclusion at least twice this year, for periods she believes lasted several days, and she receives little information about what happens to him there.

England has three high-security hospitals, for people with severe mental health disorders who pose a grave or immediate danger to themselves or others.

Their role raises difficult questions about how to balance public safety with care and rehabilitation for people who have committed serious violence and are also vulnerable.

Neate says she fears for her son’s safety, but no change to his situation is described.

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