Drive to end Winterbourne View-style care going backwards, official report shows "The time for talk is over, it's time for people with learning disabilities or autism and their families to be put first," said Sir Stephen. Norman Lamb, the care minister, signalled that he is considering changing the law to introduce a presumption that people will be cared for at home or in the community wherever possible. The scandal erupted in 2011 when an undercover BBC Panorama documentary exposed widespread abuse and humiliation of residents at the Winterbourne View private hospital near Bristol. Eleven members of staff received criminal convictions, and an official review highlighted how patients are at much greater risk of abuse and neglect if they are placed far from their family and living permanently in units intended for only a few months stay. Mr Lamb set a deadline for all such placements to be reviewed and those who could be more suitably cared for in the community to be moved out of institutions by June 1 this year. But the report shows that not only was the original target missed but that only 923 people were transferred out of inpatient units in the last year while a further 1,306 were admitted. It said doctors are anxious to move people with challenging behaviour out of inpatient centres but have real concerns that they would not get the care they need. "Many will worry that the community-based support on offer is insufficient, or not there at all," it finds. They do not want to see individuals unsupported in the community, and many will have seen precisely that happen with subsequent placement breakdown and a need for readmission. Jane Cummings, Chief Nursing Officer for England, said she had encountered "anger and frustration" from families at the length of time the shift away from institutional care has taken but added: "If it had been easy then it would have happened by now." She insisted that closing all such centres might not be the best outcome. "The overriding issue for me is what do people with learning difficulties want and can we provide that in a place that they can call home," she said. We need to stop the tendency for people to admit just because it is easier. Jan Tregelles, chief executive of Mencap said: "It has been almost four years since Winterbourne View, and in that time there have been countless meetings, many reports and strategies, but little has improved and families are still fighting to get their loved ones back into the community. NHS England, working with their partners in government and local authorities, must now lead on enacting these recommendations as a matter of urgency. Anything less and they will have grossly failed the most vulnerable people in our society.