The government has ordered an independent inquiry after nurse Lucy Letby was found guilty of the murder of seven babies and attempting to kill six others in the neonatal unit at the Countess of Chester Hospital.
The Department of Health said the inquiry would investigate the “wider circumstances around what happened at the Countess of Chester Hospital”, including how concerns raised by clinicians over Letby were dealt with.
The inquiry will also look at what actions were taken by regulators and the wider NHS, with a focus on “lessons that can be learned quickly”.
Victims’ families will be invited to “engage with and shape the inquiry”, the Department said, to “ensure their views are heard throughout the process”.
The convictions make Letby the worst child serial killer in modern British history.
Health Secretary Steve Barclay said: “I would like to send my deepest sympathy to all the parents and families impacted by this horrendous case.
“This inquiry will seek to ensure the parents and families impacted get the answers they need. I am determined their voices are heard, and they are involved in shaping the scope of the inquiry should they wish to do so.
“Following on from the work already underway by NHS England, it will help us identify where and how patient safety standards failed to be met and ensure mothers and their partners rightly have faith in our healthcare system.”
A chair for the inquiry will be appointed in due course, the Government said.
Tony Chambers, former chief executive of the Countess of Chester Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, said he would co-operate fully with the inquiry.
He said: “The crimes that have been committed are appalling and I am deeply saddened by what has come to light.
“As chief executive, my focus was on the safety of the baby unit and the wellbeing of patients and staff. I was open and inclusive as I responded to information and guidance.
“The trial, and the lengthy police investigation, have shown the complex nature of the issues raised.
“There are always lessons to be learnt and the best place for this to be achieved would be through the independent inquiry.
“I will co-operate fully and openly with the independent inquiry which has now been ordered by the Government.”
In 2015 and 2016, there was a significant rise in the numbers of babies who suffered serious and unexpected collapses in the neonatal unit at the Countess of Chester Hospital.
Letby was the only member of the nursing and clinical staff who was on duty each time the collapses happened, which the Crown argued were not natural events.
Some of the children were subjected to repeated attempts to kill them by the “cold, cruel and relentless” band 5 staff nurse, the trial – which began at Manchester Crown Court last October – heard.
Letby’s presence when collapses took place was first mentioned to senior management by the unit’s head consultant in late June 2015.
Concerns among some consultants about the defendant increased and were voiced to hospital bosses when more unexplained and unusual collapses followed, the court heard.
Prosecutor Nick Johnson KC said consultants on the neo-natal unit noticed the sharp rise in deaths and went looking for a cause.
“Their concern was that babies who were dying had deteriorated unexpectedly. Not only that, but when babies collapsed they did not respond to appropriate and timely resuscitation”, he said.
“Some other babies who did not die collapsed dramatically but then recovered – their collapses and recoveries defied the normal experience of the treating doctors.”
He said they found “one common denominator” – Letby – who was a “constant malevolent presence when things took a turn for the worse”.
Letby was not removed from the unit until after the deaths of two triplet boys and the collapse of another baby boy on three successive days in June 2016.
A jury found Letby guilty of seven counts of murder and six charges of attempted murder. Jurors were undecided on a further six charges of attempted murder, and she was cleared of one charge of attempted murder.
