Failing health board spent £4.2m on research with 'unclear' patient benefit

A health board spent more than £4m on mental health research without being able to show any direct benefit to its patients, according to an audit.

There are now demands for an outside investigation after a report commissioned by Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board found its mental health department had funded a Bangor University research centre since 2012.

It discovered there had been no formal review of the 14-year agreement and costs had risen.

The health board said there was "no suggestion of improper conduct".

A separate report commissioned by Bangor University also said there was no evidence of fraud or misconduct.

In 2012, a five-year agreement was signed between the health board and Bangor University to create the Centre for Mental Health and Society (CfMHaS).

An internal report to Betsi dated April 2026 and seen by Newyddion S4C, said the health board did not review the agreement after five years and had paid £4,292,733 to the university by September 2025.

The advisory review found the health board had not been able to show "value for money" or "a direct benefit to the north Wales population".

"It is unclear what services the health board are receiving and paying for, and how beneficial it is to the population of north Wales," the report said.

It found in several areas there was no evidence the health board's financial instructions had been followed.

Small payments were authorised when larger, annual payments should have been made involving more "approval and scrutiny".

The number of health board funded posts at the research centre had increased from two to four "without evident justification".

Some Betsi staff who worked with the research centre had not made declarations of interest, so there was a "risk of a conflict of interest".

The report was commissioned after questioning by David Graves, who in 2023 received a payment and apology from the health board after a 10-year battle over treatment his mother received from mental health services.

Graves called the funding of the research centre "a mess".

He said: "We reported this three years ago. The most worrying thing is the number of areas in which the auditor isn't able to give assurances.

"This is money bleeding out of the NHS, it's haemorrhaging funds and has been for 14 years."

Partnerships between health and higher education bodies are considered important and can help health boards develop expertise and attract or retain staff.

Guidance on such partnerships, known as the Follett Principles, emphasises the need for bodies to work together to ensure accountability.

In June 2025, CfMHaS was the subject of a separate internal report by Bangor University following allegations of fraud.

A redacted version concluded there was no evidence of misconduct or fraud on the part of the research centre or the university.

The Bangor University report said there was a further letter of agreement in 2017 between it and the health board, and that it was updated annually until 2022.

Over 100 academic papers and publications by CfMHaS indicated a "solid" research output, the report said.

It said it was up to the health board to consider whether it was appropriate for them to fund the university as they did.

The co-director of CfMHaS from 2012, Prof Rob Poole, was also honorary clinical psychiatrist at Betsi under the agreement, until his retirement in October 2025.

Poole said he did not know the Betsi review had happened, but considered the findings "grossly inaccurate".

"All of my extensive research is of direct benefit to the population of Wales, including the externally funded work in south Asia which we are now replicating in Wales."

Poole said he did not recognise the £4m figure in the Betsi report and that CfMHaS generated income with new staff paid for from other funding.

According to Betsi's internal report, improvements to the current arrangements have been proposed, but do not go far enough or consider other possible partnerships, the auditors said.

Geoff Ryall-Harvey, of health watchdog Llais, said the matter should be dealt with by an outside body.

"The [Betsi] report doesn't assign blame to individuals, but it does speak of serious financial mismanagement," he said.

"So nobody who was involved with that financial mismanagement should be involved in the solutions.

"There needs to be an external investigation. I think the time for internal action has gone."

The health board's internal report will be considered by its audit committee.

Chief executive Carol Shillabeer said of the commissioning of work at CfMHaS: "It is important to note that there is no suggestion of improper conduct."

She said the review was requested to ensure appropriate governance arrangements were in place, "as is good practice".

"In recent years the health board has adopted an increasingly robust approach to commissioning arrangements, which we are determined to strengthen further," Shillabeer said.

A Bangor University spokesperson said CfMHaS acknowledged "the importance of robust and transparent governance".

They said the research centre did not directly participate in the internal Betsi review process.

"The centre remains committed to working constructively with the health board as they continue to conduct further assurance activities," the spokesperson said.

Due to concerns about the health board's wider performance the Welsh government said this week it would take on a more direct role in Betsi.

Responding to Betsi's internal report into CfMHaS a spokesperson said: "Acting on the findings of this internal audit is a matter for the health board.

"In doing so we expect to see improvements in governance arrangements for this funding."