The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has raised "serious concerns" about the safety and quality of Essex mental health wards, after an inspection of the service revealed that patients were being harmed by its "poor practices".

The CQC was prompted to carry out the unannounced inspection after receiving reports of a serious incident and concerning information about the children and adolescent mental health wards at Essex Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust in May and June.

The trust offers mental health inpatient services to young people and their families in Essex.

Stuart Dunn, head of inspection for mental health and community services at CQC, said: "When young people with mental health needs receive care at hospital, all possible steps must be taken to ensure the environment is a safe one for them.

"Our inspectors found that Essex Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust was not providing this experience for young people at the children and adolescent mental health wards as some came to harm as a result of their failings."

He added: "Observations were not always carried out safely and patients had been harmed as a result of these poor practices which included patients self-harming during enhanced observations. These incidents were not always reported or dealt with appropriately."

After inspecting all three wards of the service - Larkwood Ward, Longview Ward and the Poplar Adolescent Unit - the CQC placed conditions on the trust's registration which means that it cannot admit any new patients without consent from CQC.

The trust must also ensure that there are adequate staffing levels on the three wards.

Stuart said: "Under-staffing was another significant concern made worse by managers not ensuring staff had the appropriate skills and experience to look after the vulnerable patients in their care.

"Many staff told us they felt overworked.

"The use of bank and agency staff was high, meaning patients missed out on receiving care from a familiar person.

"Inspectors saw examples where staff members didn't understand the needs of patients in their care which resulted in safety incidents occurring.

"All patients we spoke with told us they felt uncomfortable with unfamiliar staff and it made it hard to build therapeutic relationships."

Following the inspection, the overall service rating of the trust was downgraded from outstanding to inadequate.

The CQC is now monitoring the trust closely in efforts to improve patient safety.

Stuart said: "We are aware that the trust is working hard to improve this service and is taking the appropriate steps to ensure young people are receiving safe care.

"We will continue to engage with the trust and will return to check whether sufficient improvements have been made and will take further action if needed."

You can access the full Essex Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust CAMHS report using the link here.