After a long wait, families have a date: the TEWV inquiry starts on Monday
What happened
A retired judge has been appointed to lead the public inquiry into mental health care at Tees, Esk and Wear Valleys NHS Foundation Trust, usually shortened to TEWV. The Department of Health and Social Care announced the appointment on 17 September 2026. The chair is His Honour Judge John Potter, a retired Circuit Judge and former Deputy Judge of the Criminal Division of the Court of Appeal. He has more than 40 years of experience in public service and the administration of justice. The inquiry formally starts on 21 September 2026. TEWV provides mental health and learning disability services across County Durham, Teesside, North Yorkshire and York. The inquiry was set up by the government in December 2025, after years of campaigning by bereaved families across the North East and North Yorkshire. Those families raised concerns about an unusually high number of patient deaths by suicide at the trust over roughly a decade. The deaths included both adults and children. The inquiry has been given three broad tasks. It will establish what serious failings occurred in mental health care at the trust. It will examine why they happened. And it will set out what needs to change so that patients receive safe, high-quality care. Before choosing a chair, the Department of Health and Social Care spoke with patients, survivors and families about what the inquiry should look like and what qualities its chair should have. Judge Potter said he was "conscious of the responsibility that comes with this role and of the experiences of the patients, families and others affected", and that "their voices and experiences will be central to the inquiry's work". The Secretary of State for Health and Social Care is Yvette Cooper, who took the role in July 2026.
Why this matters
For the families involved, the most important thing about this announcement is not the name. It is the date. An inquiry was promised in December 2025. Without a chair, an inquiry cannot really begin. The months since then have been a period of waiting for people who had already waited years, in some cases for more than a decade, to find out what happened to a relative. Local MPs across the region welcomed the appointment, and several described it as a long-awaited step. One called it "a huge step forwards". Beyond the North East, this matters because of a pattern. Mental health services have been the subject of repeated inquiries and reviews across England in recent years. The concerns tend to rhyme: staffing, observation of patients at risk, communication with families, and what happens to complaints when relatives raise them. There is also a question of trust. Families who feel they were not listened to at the time are being asked to engage with a formal process now. Whether that process feels genuinely open to them will shape whether its findings are accepted. And inquiries do change things, though slowly. Their recommendations shape how trusts are run, how deaths are investigated and what families are entitled to be told.
What the evidence actually says
It is important to be precise about what has and has not been established at this point. The inquiry has not started. No findings exist. Nothing has been concluded about any individual, any ward or any decision. That is the entire purpose of the process that begins on 21 September. What is established is that the government judged the concerns serious enough to warrant a public inquiry. That is not a routine step. Public inquiries are expensive and lengthy, and they are commissioned when other forms of review are considered insufficient. The concerns that led here relate to the number of patient deaths by suicide at the trust over approximately ten years, and to how those deaths were handled and investigated. A statutory public inquiry has real powers. It can compel witnesses to give evidence and can require organisations to hand over documents. That distinguishes it from an internal review, where cooperation is voluntary. It is one of the main reasons families push for this type of inquiry rather than another kind. On timing, expectations should be realistic. Public inquiries of this kind typically run for a matter of years, not months. Opening in September 2026 does not mean answers in 2026. There will usually be preliminary hearings, then evidence gathering, then public hearings, then a report. It is also worth noting what an inquiry cannot do. It does not determine criminal guilt and it does not award compensation. Its power lies in establishing facts publicly and making recommendations.
Practical advice
If you are directly affected, the most useful thing is to watch for the inquiry's own guidance once it opens, because that is where the accurate detail will be. Inquiries usually publish terms of reference and explain how people can take part. There is often a process for families and former patients to submit their experiences, sometimes in writing and sometimes in person. Deadlines matter, so it is worth checking early rather than assuming there will be time later. Families going through inquiries frequently find them harder than expected. Reliving events, sometimes years afterwards, in a formal setting, is demanding. Support is worth arranging in advance rather than after it becomes difficult. If you are currently using TEWV services, or a relative is, the inquiry does not change your care. Services continue. If you have an immediate concern about the care someone is receiving now, that is a matter for the trust's own complaints process, or for the Care Quality Commission, rather than something to wait on the inquiry for. If you are worried about someone's safety today, do not wait for anything. In a mental health crisis in England you can call NHS 111 and select the mental health option. Samaritans can be reached free on 116 123, at any hour. In an emergency, call 999. For anyone following the story from elsewhere, one general point applies. If you have raised a concern about NHS care and feel it went nowhere, every trust has a Patient Advice and Liaison Service, and complaints that are not resolved can be taken to the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman.
What to know
His Honour Judge John Potter, a retired Circuit Judge with more than 40 years in public service, has been appointed to chair the public inquiry into mental health care at Tees, Esk and Wear Valleys NHS Foundation Trust. The appointment was announced on 17 September 2026 and the inquiry formally begins on 21 September 2026. The inquiry was set up in December 2025 after campaigning by bereaved families, following concerns about a high number of patient deaths by suicide at the trust over around ten years, including children. It will examine what failings occurred, why, and what must change. It has not yet reached any findings. Inquiries of this scale usually take years. Families who wish to contribute should watch for the inquiry's published guidance on how to take part. Sources: Department of Health and Social Care, "Chair appointed to lead Tees, Esk and Wear Valleys Trust inquiry", GOV.UK, 17 September 2026, https://www.gov.uk/government/news/chair-appointed-to-lead-tees-esk-and-wear-valleys-trust-inquiry ; Teesside Live, "Public inquiry into 'serious failings' at TEWV mental health trust to start next week", September 2026, https://www.gazettelive.co.uk/news/teesside-news/public-inquiry-tewv-chair-monday-34634144 ; Harrogate Advertiser, "Harrogate MP welcomes long-awaited appointment of chair to TEWV public inquiry by Government", September 2026, https://www.harrogateadvertiser.co.uk/news/people/harrogate-mp-welcomes-long-awaited-appointment-of-chair-to-tewv-public-inquiry-by-government-9088234 This article is for general information and does not replace advice from a doctor, pharmacist or other qualified healthcare professional.
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