Families of three people murdered by a schizophrenic man in Nottingham have branded the NHS trust that treated him “not safe,” demanding special measures following a critical report into its mental health services.
Following Wednesday’s publication of an inspection into Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, relatives of Barnaby Webber, Grace O’Malley-Kumar, and Ian Coates expressed a “real fear” that “further disasters are inevitable.”
Valdo Calocane, diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia, killed Mr Webber and Ms O’Malley-Kumar, both 19, and caretaker Mr Coates, 65, in Nottingham last June, also attempting to kill three others.
The Care Quality Commission (CQC) report criticised the trust’s mental health services, which treated Calocane from May 2020 to September 2022, for not always providing “humane, dignified or high quality care” to patients.
Between May 2024 and August 2025, the CQC carried out 39 inspections at the trust, before a trust-wide review of its leadership was carried out last September.
The report said the trust was found to have breached regulations about how it was managed and asked it to provide an action plan.
The CQC said: “Due to the level and nature of risks identified, we have taken enforcement action and asked the trust to make significant improvements and to work collaboratively with key stakeholders in the wider healthcare system to support significant improvement.”
Seven of its 18 services were rated as requires improvement, including five mental health services.
In a statement from the families of Mr Webber, Ms O’Malley-Kumar and Mr Coates, they said: “This report confirms what families have feared for far too long: this trust is not safe and should be placed into special measures immediately.
“Families have lost all confidence that this trust will learn on its own. If it is allowed to continue unchanged, there is a real fear that further harm and further disasters are inevitable.
“This is no longer about improvement plans or assurances. It is about urgent intervention, accountability at the highest level, and protecting lives.”
Greg Almond, partner at Rothera Bray Solicitors, who represents attack survivors Wayne Birkett and Sharon Miller, said there are “significant and glaring problems” in Nottinghamshire’s mental health care.
He said in a statement: “The report acknowledges the significant amount of scrutiny the trust was under following the attack. Despite this, the CQC conclude that there remain significant and glaring problems in the mental health provision in Nottinghamshire.
“For the survivors, who deserve to have faith in the mental health provisions in Nottinghamshire, this is a deeply worrying assessment and they can’t help but be left with the feeling that nothing has been done to prevent a reoccurrence.”
Ifti Majid, chief executive of Nottinghamshire Healthcare, said: “We accept the CQC’s findings and recognise where improvement is needed.
“We have already made significant improvements since the CQC’s last inspection but fully appreciate there is still more to do. We will be addressing all areas identified in the report.”
The events leading up to the killing of Mr Webber, Ms O’Malley-Kumar and Mr Coates will be looked at in a public inquiry starting in February.
