{"id":928710,"date":"2026-10-11T06:54:10","date_gmt":"2026-10-11T06:54:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/928710\/"},"modified":"2026-10-11T06:54:10","modified_gmt":"2026-10-11T06:54:10","slug":"i-get-really-upset-when-i-visit-the-harsh-reality-of-life-in-a-high-security-hospital-in-england-hospitals","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/928710\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018I get really upset when I visit\u2019: the harsh reality of life in a high-security hospital in England | Hospitals"},"content":{"rendered":"

Rampton high-security hospital in Nottinghamshire<\/a> was built in 1912. Everything about the bleak, remote facility for mentally ill people is forbidding, says Jan Neate. \u201cI get really upset going there,\u201d she says. \u201cEven though I really want to see Jake, visiting is an ordeal.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jake, 45, is Neate\u2019s son. He has been held at Rampton for eight years. In 2017, many years after being diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia, he killed his partner<\/a>, Suzanne Brown, and was deemed mentally unfit to stand trial.<\/p>\n

When Neate visits him, her fingerprints and biometrics are taken before she is escorted in. Jake is searched when he is brought into the room and searched again when he leaves. Mother and son are permitted a hug, which is often distressing. \u201cBoth of us usually cry when we hug,\u201d says Neate. \u201cIt reminds me of what our lives were like before and I think it reminds Jake of that, too.\u201d<\/p>\n

England has three high-security hospitals \u2013 Rampton, Ashworth in Merseyside and Broadmoor in Berkshire. According to the NHS trust that manages Rampton, secure hospitals are for people with severe mental health disorders<\/a> who pose grave or immediate danger to themselves or to the public. They have accommodated some of the country\u2019s most abhorred criminals, including Peter Sutcliffe, Ronnie Kray, Ian Brady, Ian Huntley and Beverley Allitt. Valdo Calocane,<\/a> who was convicted of killing three people in 2023 and diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia, has spent time in Rampton.<\/p>\n

\u2018I feel like I\u2019m banging my head against a wall trying to help him\u2019 \u2026 Jan Neate, whose son, Jake, is being held indefinitely at Rampton hospital. Photograph: Amelia Shepherd\/The Guardian<\/p>\n

These high-security hospitals have been in the spotlight this year, after it was reported that Axel Rudakubana<\/a> \u2013 who murdered three young girls at a dance class in Southport in 2024 \u2013 had been moved from Belmarsh, a category A high-security prison, to Broadmoor, which has security equivalent to a category B prison. Officials said the move was due to the deterioration of his mental health and the fact he could no longer be safely managed in prison. The plan is to return Rudakubana to Belmarsh after treatment.<\/p>\n

Throughout its history, Broadmoor has had a reputation for being tough, even menacing, given the notoriety of various people housed within its walls. Nonetheless, some saw this move as the start of a \u201ccushier\u201d life for Rudakubana and an attempt by him to manipulate the system<\/a>. Mark Fairhurst, the chair of the Prison Officers\u2019 Association, said the move would afford him freedoms not available in a high-security prison.<\/p>\n

Relatives of those incarcerated in high-security hospitals are usually unwilling to speak out because of the understandable stigma attached to the violent acts committed by those inside. But while Jake did something terrible, Neate is keen for people to understand the reality of this form of incarceration.<\/p>\n

What happens inside high-security hospitals raises important questions about how we treat people who have committed extreme violence but who are also vulnerable themselves. These are difficult, emotive questions about mental health, retribution and rehabilitation.<\/p>\n

Jake is sometimes placed in a form of segregation known as seclusion; Neate knows of at least two periods of seclusion so far this year. In both cases, she believes the seclusion lasted several days. She is given very little information about what happens to him during these periods, which she says is terrifying: \u201cI dread the phone ringing one day and staff telling me that something terrible has happened to him.\u201d<\/p>\n

Menacing reputation \u2026 Axel Rudakubana was moved this year from Belmarsh prison to Broadmoor hospital (pictured). Photograph: Neil Hall\/Shutterstock<\/p>\n

If Jake refuses his medication, his doctors have permission to administer it via injection.<\/p>\n

He has been having seizures and injuring himself. \u201cOn one occasion, he fell and injured his shoulder when he was having a seizure,\u201d says Neate. \u201cOn another occasion, also when he was thought to be having a seizure, he fell and injured his head.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jake was taken to an ordinary hospital after receiving these injuries, but Neate wasn\u2019t given any information about where he was. Whenever she calls Rampton, to see how Jake is, she gets the briefest of replies \u2013 confirmation that he is eating, drinking and sleeping, but nothing else. \u201cAnyone who thinks Rampton is an easy option for someone like Jake really doesn\u2019t understand how things are,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

Inspections of Rampton carried out by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) between July 2019 and June 2023 identified a number of failings, including a shortage of staff. Some therapy staff were used on wards to plug the gaps, leading to a reduction in patients\u2019 therapeutic programmes. Concerns were also raised about overnight lock-ups in patients\u2019 rooms being extended due to staff shortages, along with periods of \u201cconfinement\u201d during the day. Poor medicine management was identified and there were repeated issues with the safeguarding of patients.<\/p>\n

A focused review<\/a> of Rampton by the CQC in March 2024 said staffing levels had improved and the use of confinement had decreased, but there remained a \u201cculture of relying on therapy and education staff to cover nursing gaps\u201d. While medicine management had also improved, staff did not always follow the correct procedure, \u201cwhich could constitute an assault and trespass against the person\u201d. The review added: \u201cWhile we observed staff providing person-centred care, we remain concerned that people in long-term segregation were not always treated with dignity, compassion and respect.\u201d<\/p>\n

In a May 2025 CQC report<\/a>, the hospital had its rating upgraded from \u201cinadequate\u201d to \u201crequires improvement\u201d. It was found that the trust still had work to do to address staff shortages and to support staff.<\/p>\n

As a boy, Jake was happy and playful, says Neate: \u201cWe went on loads of outings like swimming, football and visits to museums. He was a really nice boy.\u201d When he was 17, he started to get ill. \u201cHe became paranoid and was admitted to hospital for two weeks as a voluntary patient. The doctors said if he stopped smoking skunk, he would recover.\u201d<\/p>\n

He went on to study geography at the University of Birmingham, but left when he was headhunted by a bank in Canary Wharf, London. Then, at 20, he was diagnosed with schizophrenia. He had to leave his job, but he built up a window-cleaning round where he lived in Essex and he was popular with his customers. To treat his schizophrenia, he was put on the drug clozapine and he gave up recreational drugs, living successfully in the community. At that point, says Neate, Jake had an illness, but he also had a life.<\/p>\n

In 2007, Jake and Suzanne met at a disco in Harlow. \u201cHe was 26 and she was 23,\u201d says Neate. Suzanne, who was known as Sue, worked as a nursery nurse. \u201cSue had such a sweet, kind nature. Whenever she came to my house, she would always bring a homemade cake with her. She really looked after Jake, made sure he took his medication and went to all his appointments with him. She was a very giving person. I miss her.\u201d<\/p>\n

At this stage, \u201cJake had dreams and ambitions and he loved Sue to pieces\u201d, says Neate. \u201cHis schizophrenia then was nothing like it is now. He was never violent. I don\u2019t think he and Sue even argued with each other.\u201d When they bought their first flat together, in Braintree, they had a new kitchen fitted and were full of plans for the future.<\/p>\n

Happier times \u2026 Neate and her son. Photograph: Courtesy of the family<\/p>\n

Jake had received excellent care and support from the NHS<\/a> mental health trust in Harlow, but their move meant Jake\u2019s care was transferred to a new trust. For 10 years, clozapine had kept him stable. But in 2017, after he started to experience physical side-effects \u2013 severe constipation, urine retention and an inability to eat or sleep \u2013 the drug was stopped suddenly.<\/p>\n

Withdrawal from clozapine is supposed to be closely monitored, but Jake, Sue and Neate were unaware of this. \u201cNone of us had any idea what could happen as a result of him being taken off clozapine,\u201d says Neate. \u201cSue and Jake really trusted their clinical team. I thought that the worst that might happen would be that Jake might have a row with Sue. I had no concept of the gravity and severity of it all. It\u2019s a heavy-duty drug and taking him off it should have been treated as a medical emergency.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jake began to experience psychosis and repeatedly tried to seek help, but little was forthcoming. Jake wrote to his doctors, listing the symptoms he was experiencing after being taken off clozapine, but he didn\u2019t receive a response. Neate says she made dozens of phone calls and sent numerous emails during this period, trying to get help for Jake, but this didn\u2019t result in any interventions. She believes that, had there been effective responses to the pleas she, Sue and Jake were making, the horror that followed could have been avoided.<\/p>\n

In texts to his mother in this period, Jake said he had been researching private hospitals. \u201cI feel a bit angry that no one told me of the implications of going on to this drug,\u201d he wrote. \u201cI would like to be an inpatient to deal with all the issues.\u201d<\/p>\n

His condition worsened. On 15 December 2017, a mental health worker visited the couple\u2019s flat and said telephone support would be put in place and a home visit organised for the following week. That evening, Neate received a call from Sue, \u201cscreaming and hysterical\u201d. She said Jake was hurting her. Neate told her to get out of the flat and immediately called the police.<\/p>\n

\"A\u2018I miss her lovely sunny nature\u2019 \u2026 Suzanne Brown, who was killed by Jake Neate in 2017. Photograph: Essex Police<\/p>\n

Three hours after that call, police officers arrived at the flat. By then, it was far too late. Jake had stabbed Suzanne 173 times.<\/p>\n

Neate says she didn\u2019t understand the severity of what was happening until the police called her and said: \u201c\u2018We\u2019ve taken the dead woman from the flat.\u2019 All I could say was: \u2018Oh my God, what do you mean?\u2019 \u2026 I am always asking myself if I could have prevented this happening if I had been close by.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jake was initially charged with murder, but was found to be unfit to stand trial. He said he had been hearing voices coming out of the TV urging him to kill Sue and was having terrible thoughts about God, the devil and the battle between good and evil.<\/p>\n

When a person is deemed mentally unfit to stand trial, a trial of the facts takes place. Rather than deciding on a defendant\u2019s criminal guilt or innocence, this determines whether the defendant carried out the alleged acts. The trial found that Jake had killed Sue. The jury heard that Sue was devoted to Jake and that she had looked after him when he was unwell with \u201cthe patience of a saint\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cI miss Sue so much,\u201d says Neate. \u201cI miss her lovely sunny nature \u2026 We used to go on outings together, to spas and to the cinema. I feel so lonely. I don\u2019t have Jake as he was and I don\u2019t have Sue. Jake was a perpetrator, but I believe he was also a victim of the system.\u201d<\/p>\n

A report on mental health services<\/a> after Sue\u2019s killing identified eight failings and made seven recommendations for change. It found that an up-to-date risk assessment was not carried out after the sudden cessation of clozapine and that there was neither appropriate professional monitoring nor guidance for Jake and his family. It also found that clinical information was not communicated consistently within and between teams.<\/p>\n

An investigation for the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) found that the police response was delayed because it was initially miscategorised by the call handler<\/a>. The IOPC did not identify any misconduct, but found that two members of staff in the control room \u201chad not met expected standards\u201d<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u2018Everything is so clinical there\u2019 \u2026 Rampton hospital in Nottinghamshire. Photograph: PA Images\/Alamy<\/p>\n

When Jake was sent to Rampton, it was supposed to be temporary. Neate was told that when he was more stable he could be moved to a medium-security unit with a less restrictive regime. Jake is held at Rampton on what is known as a section 37 order; the Home Office has to give permission for the release of those held under this type of indefinite hospital order.<\/p>\n

In a letter to Neate on 28 July 2026, Jake\u2019s doctor at Rampton wrote: \u201cIn recent years we have seen several episodes of decline in his condition, but overall he is making progress.\u201d He also described Jake as having a serious mental health disorder that is \u201cvery resistant to treatment\u201d.<\/p>\n

A spokesperson for Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS foundation trust said: \u201cWhile we cannot comment on the care of individual patients, we fully understand that families want the very best for their loved ones and we recognise how difficult it can be when progress feels slow. We always welcome families raising concerns with us and are committed to working with them openly.<\/p>\n

\u201cDecisions about moving a patient to a lower level of security are made carefully, taking account of their recovery and wellbeing alongside wider safety considerations. For many patients at Rampton these decisions also involve the Ministry of Justice and the receiving service, which can mean the process takes time.\u201d<\/p>\n

Neate firmly believes Jake is deteriorating at Rampton. \u201cJake says he is fighting a battle between good and evil and says he has to rescue Sue,\u201d she says. \u201cHe isn\u2019t the same person he used to be \u2026 I don\u2019t think he\u2019s always treated as a human being, as a person. Everything is so clinical there. They talk about his presentation, as if he\u2019s a thing, rather than a human with a heart.<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel like I\u2019m banging my head against a wall trying to help him. All I want for Jake is a life that\u2019s reasonable, with some hope in it. People who are mentally ill are entitled to a bit of care. But I don\u2019t believe Jake\u2019s getting that. It\u2019s not at all cushy or luxurious for him in Rampton, very far from it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to be considered for publication in our letters<\/a> section, please click here<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Rampton high-security hospital in Nottinghamshire was built in 1912. Everything about the bleak, remote facility for mentally ill…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":928711,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[49,48,84],"class_list":["post-928710","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-health","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-health"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/928710","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=928710"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/928710\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/928711"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=928710"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=928710"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=928710"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}