A mental health trust in west London has denied reports it scrapped plans for a support centre in Ealing after wasting £4 million on various projects.
The Independent on Sunday yesterday claimed West London Mental Health NHS Trust had overspent £4 million on unfunded or unapproved schemes.
It said this included £560,000 to refurbish an office block at Lakeside Mental Health Unit, beside West Middlesex Hospital, in Isleworth, and almost £80,000 on a café which had never served a single beverage.
The article blamed financial mismanagement for the trust's decision to cancel a planned £1.5 million support unit at the Lammas Centre in Ealing.
The trust, which provides services for people in the boroughs of Ealing, Hammersmith & Fulham and Hounslow, confirmed an independent investigation was underway to determine whether money had been overspent on any projects.
It said a projected £3.9 million overspend had been identified early in this financial year but the situation had been 'rectified' and no overspend was now forecast for 2014/15.
However, the trust claimed the IoS report had inaccurately cited overspends on a number of schemes, and insisted its project to build recovery houses in Ealing and the other boroughs it served was still going ahead.
In a statement published yesterday it said: "For reasons unrelated to finance, the Lammas Centre was judged unsuitable and we are working with Rethink, our third sector partner, and Ealing Council to open a recovery house in Ealing in a different location. This project is well advanced and we hope to open a recovery house in Ealing early in the summer."
The trust declined to comment further on the alleged overspends as it said these were the subject of the investigation.
"We are unable to comment in detail on the investigation while it is on-going. However, we can assure the public that the trust takes its duty to spend taxpayer money on priorities that make a difference to patient care very seriously," it said.
"The investigation will be full and impartial, and will interview all those involved in the management of the department at that time."
Councillors in Ealing last week voted to close The Solace Centre, a drop-in service for people with mental health issues.
