'Unforgiveable': Damning report finds death of learning disabled man was 'entirely preventable'

ITV News

16-07-2025

The inquest into the death of Myles Scriven in Huddersfield found multiple opportunities to save his life were missed, as ITV News Investigations Editor Dan Hewitt reports
A coroner has issued a damning report against an NHS hospital trust following the entirely preventable death of a 31-year-old autistic man with learning disabilities, branding the attitude of doctors 'dismissive and complacent'.
The inquest into the death of Myles Scriven in Huddersfield found multiple opportunities to save his life were missed by staff at Huddersfield Royal Infirmary and his GP practice, after he died from an entirely treatable blood clot in his leg.
Myles' uncle Paul Scriven, who is a Liberal Democrat peer in the House of Lords, told ITV News his nephew's death is "unforgivable", and accused the Calderdale and Huddersfield NHS Trust of being "more concerned with defending its reputation than preventing the deaths of people with learning disabilities".
Lord Scriven said Myles' death must be a watershed moment in how people with learning disabilities are treated in the health service.
Myles became unwell in late 2022 with shortness of breath and a blood clot in his leg. He was prescribed Rivaroxaban - a blood thinning medication - but despite taking the pill every day as prescribed, months later he was still unwell.
A consultant haematologist recommended switching Myles' medication to a different blood thinner - Warfarin - but Myles' doctor instead assumed Myles was not taking the drug and opted to keep Myles on Rivaroxaban.
When in April 2023, Myles was again suffering with shortness of breath, his GP surgery offered him a telephone consultation, despite Myles' stated issues with communication.
Myles was struggling to breathe normally but he was not referred to A&E, and instead was told to stay at home.
The following day, Myles collapsed and was rushed to hospital, where he later died from a pulmonary embolism.
Despite his family flagging with healthcare professionals that he had a learning disability and was autistic, and would require help to make medical or treatment decisions, his two uncles - who were his stated medical advocates - were never contacted by the hospital or GP either in late 2022 or spring 2023.
'For all intents and purposes, other than his learning disability and autism, Myles was physically well,' said David Black, Paul's husband and Myles' uncle.
'There's lots of different things that can be done, but unfortunately these opportunities were never afforded to Myles, merely because he wasn't believed and because he was learning disabled and autistic, he wasn't really able to engage in decisions about his treatment.'
On July 11, 2025, the coroner in Bradford found that both a lack of adjustment for Myles' learning disability and autism and neglect contributed to his death.
He found healthcare professionals had a 'complacent and dismissive attitude towards Myles and his learning disability', clinicians were 'blind' to his needs, and did not make sufficient reasonable adjustments for his disability.
Speaking in his first television interview to ITV News about Myles' death, Lord Scriven said "there is no doubt" that Myles would still be alive if he did not have a learning disability.
'Hearing that this was preventable - that Myles could have been saved on at least three occasions - was really, really difficult,' he said.
'If we had been called, we would have been able to support Myles in making a decision that would have probably saved his life.'
During the inquest, the NHS Trust tried to argue Myles did have mental capacity to make his own decisions regarding his medical treatment.
'David knew Myles for 28 years of his life. I carried Myles in the first few hours of his life, and I carried him on my shoulder in his coffin to his grave,' said Lord Scriven.
'He didn't have capacity. They were trying to tell us that people who had been with him for ten minutes knew him better than us.'
'It is unforgivable.'
'It was trying to save their reputation rather than reflecting and trying to save peoples' lives with learning disabilities.'
Official data shows that men with a learning disability die 20 years earlier than the general population in the UK. Women with a learning disability die on average 23 years younger.
Professor Sara Ryan researches social care with a specialism in learning disabilities and autism. Her own son, Connor Sparrowhawk, who was learning disabled, autistic and had epilepsy, died in 2013 whilst in the care of an NHS assessment facility.
'I was struck by how similar Myles' death was to Connor's in that he died through the most woeful failings of healthcare,' she told ITV News.
'Connor was left to drown in a bath in a hospital unit, and he had diagnosed epilepsy.'
'We have to remember that people with learning disabilities aren't ill,' Professor Ryan said.
'There's no reason why people should be dying so early. You have got a tsunami of evidence that says we know why people are dying, we know how people are dying, and we are doing nothing about it.'
Outside Bradford Coroner's Court, Myles' uncles reflected on the judgement.
'It was very raw listening to the full list of times Myles could have been saved.'
'We now want to do something positive in the legacy of Myles. To say that Myles' death will not be in vain, and other families do not have to go through what we've been through,' Paul said.
Brendan Brown, Chief Executive, Calderdale and Huddersfield NHS Foundation Trust, said: 'My sincere condolences go out to Myles' family and his loved ones. We have formally apologised to Myles' family, but we fully acknowledge that no apology can compensate for the profound impact of what has occurred, nor for the failings identified within the Trust.
"We accept the coroner's findings in full. We will ensure these are used to build upon the changes made as a result of the Trust's internal review and the clinical lessons learned from Myles' sad death.
'We acknowledge the concerns that there is more which we could have done to involve Myles' family in his care and are acting on this as a Trust.'