Family of Sheffield man who escaped from hospitals say he was 'failed by care providers'

Reece Campbell, who suffers from psychosis, escaped from the Michael Carlisle Centre three times between July 12 and July 15 before he was moved to Middleton St George in County Durham on July 19 - and escaped again just 14 hours later.

After absconding he allegedly made his way back to Sheffield by stealing vehicles.

He was caught on Thursday, 23 July after he crashed the car he was driving on Abbeydale Road following a police chase which began in Derbyshire.

Police arrested him on suspicion of two counts of burglary, three counts of robbery, failing to stop and two counts of dangerous driving.

Reece suffered minor injuries in the collision alongside two passengers in another car, one of whom fears she could could now go blind.

Reece’s aunt, Karen Wint, said she first noticed something was wrong when he came to stay at her house on July 11 and began staring blankly for long periods.

She said he had never previously suffered from mental health issues and his behaviour was completely out of character.

She said: “Everyone loves Reece, he's the most gentle and nice person you could wish to meet. You can imagine the shock that we have all been through, it could have been so much worse.

“He just started to change and he wanted to catch a taxi with no shoes on."

That night he was taken to the Michael Carlisle Centre where he was sectioned under the Mental Health Act.

Karen said: “On the Tuesday we visited him and he threw a chest of drawers at the window, it smashed into a million pieces. The staff just said it happens regularly.

"He kicked a window out when we were in the hospital, they just took it as if it was normal.”

After escaping for a third time Reece was moved, against his families wishes, to a high-secure unit at Middleton St George before managing to escape again.

Karen said: “We were told we can’t have him. They took him off us and we can’t get our head around what a journey he’s gone through.

"Look what he went through, that's no fault of his own. He should never have been allowed to get out of there. God forbid he hasn't killed anyone or himself.”

She added: "How can that be possible if it's a secure hospital? How depressing and sad for Reece and for everyone concerned in this.”.

He is now in another hospital in Sheffield and doing well.

A South Yorkshire Police spokesperson said they cannot confirm any details about someone who is potentially the subject of investigation and cannot comment.

A spokesperson for Sheffield Health and Social Care NHS Foundation Trust said: “We treat any incident like this very seriously and our main priority is always the safety and security of our service users and staff. It would be inappropriate to comment on individual cases due to patient confidentiality, however, we would encourage anyone who is concerned about the care they or a loved one have received to get in touch with us so we can look into their concerns.”

A Middleton St George spokesman said: “We cannot comment on individuals, but all incidents are fully investigated and the hospital works closely alongside the police and NHSE and other regulatory bodies whenever necessary. Our first priority is the safety of our patients, and of the community.”