Farleigh Hospital Inquiry

The Farleigh Hospital inquiry of 1971 examined allegations of cruelty, ill-treatment and neglect at Farleigh Hospital, a long-stay institution for people with learning disabilities in Somerset. The inquiry found evidence of physical abuse, including assault and improper use of seclusion by staff members. The inquiry formed part of a series of investigations into long-stay hospitals that began with Ely Hospital in 1969 and continued through Whittingham (1972), South Ockendon (1974) and Normansfield (1978). According to the public record, the Hospital Advisory Service, established after Ely, received expanded inspection powers for long-stay hospitals following Farleigh. The inquiry is cited as contributing to the government's 1971 white paper 'Better Services for the Mentally Handicapped', which established targets for reducing hospital places and developing community-based alternatives. Several staff members faced criminal prosecution following the inquiry's findings. The Farleigh inquiry, alongside its contemporaries, provided evidence that informed the policy shift away from large institutional care towards community-based services for people with learning disabilities. This represented a fundamental change in approach to care provision that shaped subsequent decades of health and social care policy.

Influenced by Ely Hospital Inquiry