Nurses lose jobs as England’s last learning disability hospital closes
Nursing staff are among dozens of NHS workers who have lost their jobs and may not receive redundancy pay, after their hospital was shut down.
The staff were employed at Calderstones Hospital – the last remaining NHS learning disabilities hospital in England – which was run by Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust.
Unions the GMB and Unison allege that the workers, including nurses and healthcare assistants, were offered “unsuitable” alternative roles that they could not take, meaning they are now facing unemployment with no guarantee of redundancy pay.
“Everyone is devastated”
Zander Sumner
NHS England decided in 2017 that Calderstones Hospital would cease operations in 2018, in the wake of the high profile scandal at the private learning disability hospital Winterbourne View.
In response to Winterbourne View, the NHS announced an ambition to move most learning disabilities care into the community in a process led by then chief nursing officer for England, Jane Cummings.
The Calderstone site was given to Mersey Care for the transition period, with a plan to transfer learning disability care to elsewhere in the North West.
The site – located in Whalley, Lancashire – would then be handed to another trust once the learning disability hospital had closed.
The planned 2018 closure was delayed but, on 1 April 2024, the hospital ceased operations under Mersey Care and ownership transferred to Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust.
A Mersey Care sign at the entrance to the now-closed Calderstones Hospital, also known as the Whalley Site
Over the last few months, staff have been waiting to find out what would happen with their jobs.
Zander Sumner, an HCA working night shifts at the hospital, was told at the end of last week that he would lose his job after 17 years at Calderstones.
His union, the GMB, claimed that Mr Sumner would, along with more than 50 others, be losing his job, possibly with no redundancy pay, because he declined an alternative role that would have seen him commuting long distances each day to Aspen Wood, a new Mersey Care-run learning disability unit in Liverpool.
Zander Sumner
For some of the staff, which included HCAs like Mr Sumner, registered nurses and others, working in Liverpool would require an 80 mile commute per day, according to the GMB.
Unison said it had also been contacted by members in this position, with “at least 40” staff not being offered a role with a neighbouring trust. Both unions said it was unreasonable to expect workers to make the round trip from Whalley to Liverpool.
Mr Sumner, who lives near the hospital in Whalley, was offered a job that he said would have added around three hours to his night shift due to travel time.
He told Nursing Times that he felt Mersey Care had not properly taken staff members’ individual circumstances into account when offering alternative work.
“They started this process last year to find us alternative employment, but it wasn’t suitable for the majority of us in the Whalley area,” said Mr Sumner.
“I work nights, and look after my kids; there is a five-minute changeover in the morning where I bomb it home from work, swap over with my wife so she can work and I look after the kids.
“If I was in Liverpool I wouldn’t make it home to look after the kids… it would be around a 15 hour day, I couldn’t do it,” he said.
The trust offered some employees, including Mr Sumner, incentives including pay compensation for travel when their complaints were aired about the distance to their potential new workplace.
Mr Sumner said the long distance to the new place of work was unacceptable for him, and that the alternative he was given was an end to his contract without any further pay. Others were offered alternative work even further away.
A colleague of his, he claimed, would have had to take public transport from his current place of residence in Whalley to Liverpool at a cost of £600 a month, with 4-5 hours on public transport per day.
“Even if they offered three times my wage, I couldn’t do that,” Mr Sumner said.
“We weren’t told to apply for jobs, just that this job is identified for us. I, as a team leader, have been sat in meetings for months thinking, ‘when will common sense arrive – when will they take Liverpool off the table?’
“So [the trust] has sacked us, and said they’ll ‘look’ at redundancy pay, but we’ve not been given a forecasted number; over the next three weeks they’re reviewing our circumstances, we’re in limbo for the foreseeable future.”
Mr Sumner added: “Calderstones has been the centre of the village for 100 years, I met my wife there. There are friendships which have lasted for decades which have been ripped away, everyone is devastated.”
Former Whalley site medical secretary Michelle Smith, represented by Unison, added: “Since being served our 12- week notice I have been feeling anxious, barely sleeping and waking up worrying about my future.
“I was laid-off on Sunday with no guarantee of alternative employment or redundancy pay. I’ve worked for 32 years in the NHS and I can’t believe how I’ve been treated by the trust.
“Despite many staff saying they can’t travel to the Liverpool site, the trust has continued to send us alternative jobs that are based in the Merseyside area. It’s outrageous.
“Like many of my colleagues, I’m now wondering how I’ll make ends meet and pay my bills at the end of this month.”
Unison North West regional organiser Dale Ollier described the treatment of the workers as a “scandal”, adding: “So many dedicated staff have been left without any firm prospect of employment or redundancy payout.
“Unison has directed staff to the union’s There For You charity for financial support. Mersey Care must do the right thing and pay these staff the redundancy pay they’re owed.”
The GMB released a statement ahead of the Easter bank holiday criticising the trust for the job losses.
It said that some workers were offered jobs in Liverpool, while others were expected to take “unsuitable” ones in local trusts.
Michael Clark, an organiser for the GMB, said the workers had been left with “dashed hopes and uncertain futures”, adding: “Mersey Care’s insistence on average an 80-mile commute per shift is unreasonable.
“By disregarding members with family and caring responsibilities and offering unsuitable alternatives, the trust is failing its duty of care to them.
“These employees deserve better treatment and if required, the redundancy they are rightfully entitled to,” he said.
A Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust spokesperson said: “We are aware of concerns among some of our workforce due to changes in working arrangements alongside the transfer of care from our Whalley site to Aspen Wood, based at Maghull Health Park.
“The decision to cease commissioning forensic learning disability services from Whalley, was made by NHS England in 2017. As a result, the Whalley site transferred to Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust on 1 April 2024.
“Throughout this ongoing process, Mersey Care has supported all staff to continue their careers within the NHS by offering opportunities within our trust and other local NHS organisations to protect their employment, to retain talent and minimise the loss of valuable skills and expertise from the NHS.”
The spokesperson added: “We have worked hard with partner NHS organisations to reach an agreement so all registered nurses and health care assistants would be offered local opportunities, including for some to remain at the Whalley site.
“Mersey Care will continue to follow the legal framework and work alongside our workforce, staff side and partners to support staff and offer them suitable alternative roles where possible, subject to NHS employment regulations.”
