Serious concerns have been raised about patient safety and standards of care at Broomfield Hospital, following a series of critical findings and ongoing scrutiny from regulators and public bodies.

In September 2025, the Care Quality Commission (CQC) published reports from inspections that took place in November 2024, criticising Broomfield Hospital’s Children and Young People’s services, rating them “inadequate” overall.  Inspectors identified:

• Staff were afraid to raise concerns due to fear of reprisals
• Trust did not ensure staffing levels and skill mix were sufficient to meet needs of children and young people, as well as unsafe early discharges leading to high re-admission rates
• Care between departments wasn’t always timely, leading to long waiting times. 

The Children and Young Person’s service at Broomfield was issued with a Warning Notice under section 29A of the Health and Social Care Act 2008, requiring the Trust to significantly improve the quality of care being provided. Following this, the CQC felt they had to go further and served a Section 31 notice for failing to meet regulations related to safe care, treatment, management, oversight of governance and quality assurance systems.

The CQC carried out further inspections in May 2025 (reported November 2025) which rated the Trust’s leadership “Inadequate”. The report highlighted serious systemic failures, including:

• Failures in leadership and organisational culture that were putting people at risk and leaving staff feeling unsupported and undervalued.
• Despite numerous improvement programmes, there are persistent quality and safety failures that led to enforcement action in maternity, children and young people, and urgent and emergency care services.
• Staff feel disconnected from senior leaders, undervalued, and unable to raise concerns without fear. Poor behaviours go unchallenged, and where financial pressures were perceived to take priority over quality and safety.

The Trust has acknowledged that further work is needed to address these issues and to reduce the number of serious, preventable safety incidents. Responding to the findings, Chief Executive Dawn Scrafield said: “We are deeply sorry for having failed our patients and staff. We know we must do better.” Despite this, concerns remain about the persistence of these failings.

Ongoing concerns into 2026

Concerns about patient safety at Broomfield Hospital have continued into 2026.

On 14 January 2026, the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO) called on the Trust to carry out a systemic review of its performance against national cancer waiting time targets. This followed an investigation into the death of a patient who experienced repeated delays in receiving chemotherapy treatment.

Performance data highlights the scale of the issue. In 2023, only 47.6% of cancer patients at the Trust began treatment within the target timeframe from referral. By July 2025, this had fallen further to 46.1%, significantly below the national target of 85%.

The Trust has responded to the PHSO with an action plan which aims to invest in technology to improve efficiency by digitising processes and specialist software to analyse cancer pathways and identify delays. Weekly meetings are going to be held to track the progress and ensure the longest waiting patients are prioritised.

On 19 January 2026, Marie Goldman (Chelmsford MP), wrote to the Trust’s CEO raising her urgent concerns for patient safety at Broomfield Hospital A&E, calling for an investigation into the death of a father who waited hours in Broomfield Hospital’s A&E department accompanied by his son. Despite complaints of severe chest pain and repeatedly asking for help, he was told to wait and passed away in the waiting room.

Marie Goldman met with  the Trust’s Senior Leadership Team on 23 January 2026 to discuss the incident and raise her constituents concerns about Broomfield Hospital and to identify ways to improve the Trust and avoid tragedies such as these. A full independent investigation into the incident is underway.

National intervention and the need for urgent improvement

In March 2026, Wes Streeting, Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, announced that Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust would be one of five NHS Trusts placed into the new NHS Intensive Recovery Programme.

The programme, due to begin in April, is designed to address long-standing and systemic challenges within underperforming Trusts, including leadership instability, workforce pressures and financial constraints.

Announcing the measures, Mr Streeting said: “Failure has been tolerated for too long. Staff know it. Patients feel it. And I won’t stand for it.”

While this intervention is intended to drive meaningful improvement, it also underlines the seriousness of the concerns and the urgent need to restore safe, effective care for patients.

Supporting patients and families affected by medical negligence

If you or a loved one has been affected by care at Broomfield Hospital, or any other healthcare provider, it is important to know that support is available.

At Switalskis, our specialist medical negligence solicitors understand how distressing these experiences can be. We take the time to listen, to understand what has happened, and to guide you through your options with sensitivity and clarity.

Every case is different, and seeking specialist advice can help you understand whether your care fell below an acceptable standard and what steps can be taken next.

Types of Medical Negligence Claims

• Birth injury claims: cerebral palsy, HIE, midwifery negligence, neonatal care, retained products of conception, stillbirth, traumatic birth, Erb’s palsy, perineal tears, inquests
• A&E claims: inadequate discharge, sepsis, stroke, inadequate surgery, delayed diagnosis, delayed treatment, misdiagnosis, nursing negligence, inquests
• Delay in diagnosis