Trust fined over man's bath death

A mental health trust has been fined £25,000 after the death of an elderly man who was scalded in a bath filled with 95C water at a respite home.

George Inwood, 68, who had Parkinson's disease, died of a suspected heart attack and scalding at The Lodge Hostel in Stechford, Birmingham, in 2004.

An inquest heard a faulty thermostat meant water was twice the recommended temperature.

Birmingham City Council prosecuted the trust for health and safety offences.

Birmingham and Solihull Mental Health Trust, which owned the centre, had earlier pleaded guilty to the offences which were brought under section three of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974.

'Sad and unnecessary'

The court also heard earlier how a contractor's report had previously recommended fitting a thermostatic mixture valve to regulate water temperature to avoid the risk of scalding.

However, no action was taken, the court heard.

The trust was also ordered to pay £9,148 in costs at Birmingham Crown Court.

Neil Eustace, chair of the city council's public protection committee, said: "Protection of vulnerable members of the public is an important duty under health and safety legislation.

"This has been a complex, and at times difficult, investigation into the sad and unnecessary death of Mr Inwood."