Social workers criticised over vulnerable adult who was dead for nine months in his Milton Keynes home before anyone realised

Roy Curtis, 28, who had changed his name from Ayman Habayeb, had been under the care of Milton Keynes Council's social services for six years as a vulnerable adult.

He had been anxious about losing his benefits after he faced having to attend a fit-to-work assessment, which threatened to turn his life upside down.

His distress was great that he was admitted to the Campbell Centre psychiatric unit, where clinicians successfully got the payments restored and backdated.

Roy, who had refused all contact with his concerned parents in MK, was discharged to the Home Treatment Team and to his local GP. Weeks later he took his own life at his Ashlands flat - but his body was not discovered until more than nine months later when bailiffs tried to claim unpaid rent.

A safeguarding adults review, seen by the coroner, stated: "A referral was made to adult social care before his discharge as he was thought likely to require care and support. A social care assessment was not completed.

"Ten months later Adult D was found deceased in August 2019 by bailiffs entering the property due to non-payment of rent."

Hearing evidence about why the social care assessment was not completed, MK coroner Tom Osborne heard from Sarah Nixon, representing social workers from the mental health and autism team.

Mr Osborne said: "I think it is accepted that the referral and assessment that had been requested should have taken place prior to Roy being discharged from the Campbell Centre and what I am missing at the moment is I cannot understand from the reports that I have received and your evidence, why that did not happen."

Ms Nixon told the hearing, which was held remotely: "I have looked at how our referrals come into the service now, because I think we do deem that as not acceptable. We make sure that all of our referrals that come in are screened by managers within the team."

The inquest heard the council's social workers had been understaffed at the time Roy was assessed and were prioritising the various cases which came in.

It was revealed the council still took 28 days to complete a referral, even after the findings of the review into the death of Roy, who had moved from Dubai to the UK in 2009 to attend University, at which he struggled in part due to his high functioning autism/Asperger’s syndrome.

MK Council sent him a letter on December 10 2018 to his flat on Lexham Road, Ashland, Milton Keynes, in which they informed him that if he did not make contact with social workers by the end of the month they would close his case. But no social worker ever tried to visit him.

Mr Osborne asked: "Was that the process then, of closing a case off? Particularly where it was known that somebody has a diagnosis of Asperger's, to close it off without there being further attempt to try and contact?"

Ms Nixon said: "That is not the process now...I do not believe it was the process then. I would have expected that that allocated worker had knocked on the door."

She added: "There were a number of attempts that were made in order to contact Mr Curtis, but I I would have expected a welfare check to be undertaken. I would have expected for us to have knocked on the door, someone actually going around to the house.

"I would expect that we would have made a couple of attempts in order to meet him at the home address and then I feel we could have requested a welfare check from the police."

The inquest heard no social worker ever attended Roy's address because when it was confirmed that the letter, which senior members of adult services at Milton Keynes Council decided to send, had arrived at the correct address, the case was closed by the stated deadline.

Mr Osborne said: "It seems extraordinary to me that the supervisor advises to contact the mental health team and check the address, but if the address is then correct, to close the involvement rather than to delve further."

The conclusion of the safeguarding review said there was no multi-agency discharge plan and the communication between several agencies was poor.

It also concluded that the subsequent failure to undertake an adult social care assessment when Roy was discharged from the hospital "should not have happened.

In a concluding remark, the report stated he "fell between the services and failed to get the assistance he needed."

The inquest continues.

Suicide is preventable and support is available, such as Samaritans’ helpline. When life is difficult, Samaritans are there – day or night, 365 days a year. You can call them for free on 116 123, email them at [email protected], or visit their website to find your nearest branch.