Large secure institutions are potentially vulnerable to abuse. High security (special) hospitals are no exception and in the 19th century Broadmoor Hospital was subject to at least two major investigations because of rumours of malpractice.
In the 1980s there were a number of inquiries into the unexpected deaths of some black patients. There were 3 formal enquiries into the standards of care in the high security hospitals in the 1980s and 90s.
The first such investigation known as the Boynton Report was stimulated by rumours followed by a television programme which alleged abuse of and cruelty to patients at Rampton Hospital. The report was very critical and there were a number of voices demanding the closure of the hospital.
It wasn’t closed but a new management structure was put in place and conditions improved.