IN the latest in a series of damning indictments local healthcare, the Care Quality Commission (CQC) has slammed leadership at the trust which runs local hospitals.

Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust managers who run Basildon and Orsett Hospitals have been branded as inadequate following an inspection in May.  

It is the latest in a series of critical reports on the health care offered by the trust, which also runs Broomfield (Chelmsford) and Southend hospitals.

Last month Basildon Hospital was subject to a scathing review over its care for the elderly and its A&E performance.

And that was barely a month after the CQC issued a report slating children's care at the hospital.

Those two reports brought condemnation from Thurrock MP Jen Craft and her counterpart from South Basildon and East Thurrock, James McMurdock, who both blasted the hospital's management, with Mrs Craft calling for government intervention.

The latest inspection looked at how well-led the trust is and was carried out in response to ongoing concerns identified during the previous inspections, where enforcement action was taken and a warning notice was issued. 

Hazel Roberts, CQC deputy director of operations in the East of England, said: "During our well-led inspection of Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust, we found serious and systemic failures in leadership and organisational culture that were putting people at risk and leaving staff feeling unsupported and undervalued.  

"Leaders were aware of many of the challenges they faced but were unable to demonstrate how services would improve at the pace and scale required. Despite numerous improvement programmes, we found persistent quality and safety failures that led to enforcement action in maternity, children and young people, and urgent and emergency care services.  

"Staff across all three hospital sites told us they felt disconnected from senior leaders, undervalued, and unable to raise concerns without fear.

"Many described a culture where poor behaviours went unchallenged, and where financial pressures were perceived to take priority over quality and safety.  

"However, the trust recognises the issues and challenges it continues to face. It acknowledges that further work is needed to improve the areas we've highlighted and to reduce the number of serious, preventable safety incidents which shouldn't have happened. 

"Leaders have demonstrated an awareness of where improvements are required and have begun taking steps to address these.  

"We have told leaders the areas where improvements are needed to ensure the trust is led successfully, and we will continue to monitor them, including through future inspections, to ensure the necessary improvements are made." 

• The trust has struggled to complete mandatory reviews of deaths in a timely manner, with only 65% of reviews completed on time. These are critical for learning lessons and preventing future harm. 
• The new operating model introduced last November caused confusion around roles, responsibilities, and accountability, undermining effective leadership and governance. 
• Staff engagement and morale were among the lowest in the country. In the 2024 NHS Staff Survey, the trust received the worst score nationally among similar trusts for being compassionate and inclusive. 
• Staff didn't feel safe raising concerns. Only 59.4% of staff said they would feel secure raising concerns about unsafe clinical practice, compared to 70% nationally. And only 40.5% felt confident the organisation would address their concerns, against a national average of 55.1%. 
• The trust was among the worst-performing nationally for ambulance handover delays and cancer waiting time standards, although some improvement had been seen at individual sites. 
• The trust had no formal leadership strategy or talent management programme, and appraisal compliance remained poor despite the introduction of a new system. 

Cllr Mark Hooper, Cabinet Member for Health and Well-being, said: "This care Quality Commission inspection makes it clear that frontline staff at local hospitals, including Basildon, do not get the support they need from senior managers. It follows similar findings in inspections of Basildon Hospital and Basildon Hospital's Children's Services.

"I know senior managers at the trust are working hard to make changes to better support their frontline staff. I will monitor their progress and be on hand to offer my help and support as they do this vital work."

Mrs Craft, who has called for direct government intervention, said: "This report highlights some serious concerns around senior leadership, with unacceptable knock-on effects for patients and staff.

"It's very worrying that frontline workers, who do an excellent job under challenging conditions, feel underrepresented and disconnected from leadership.

"We must see significant, measurable improvements in the culture and quality of leadership at the Trust, with immediate action from senior staff to address the alarming issues brought to light in this report. 

"I will continue to raise concerns around leadership directly with the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, emphasising the anxieties of local families like mine, who rely on this Trust for care."

Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation trust was formed on 1 April 2020 following the merger of Basildon and Thurrock, Mid Essex and Southend NHS trusts. 

Acute hospital care means treatment and support in hospital for short-term or serious health problems that need urgent or specialist attention.

The trust is the only provider of this type of hospital care within the Mid and South Essex Integrated Care System. They cover a diverse population with areas of significant deprivation.  

The trust has a £1.5 billion turnover with 16,871 staff providing services to a population of 1.2 million people.  

The latest report will be published on CQC's website in the coming days.