The Svengali nurse who groomed dozens of anorexic girls for sex

13 April 2012

Predator: Senior NHS nurse David Britten sexually abused women in his care over a twenty year period

An NHS male nurse behaved liked a 'predatory paedophile' grooming dozens of fragile young women for sex over two decades.

David Britten, 54, an expert in eating disorders, had a Svengali-like hold on patients as young as 17, many of whose lives he left in ruins.

Two inquiries failed to halt his activities and by the time of the third he had vanished. A worldwide manhunt is still underway.

His evil practices were exposed yesterday in a report commissioned by health chiefs which included evidence from 23 victims.

Britten first began work in the Westminster area eating disorder service in 1980.

He became manager of an NHS clinic in Pimlico, Central London, in 1996, and began to promote it as a leading service in the field.

It was there that he found himself with access to a string of vulnerable young women, referred to him by GPs, consultants and health trusts.

Some viewed him as a 'romantic hero' and queued for one-to-one meetings.

Incredibly, others were so in his thrall that more than one agreed to have his child.

One woman's baby died in the womb but it is understood that at least one other woman successfully bore him a child.

Others, however, said he made them 'shiver with fear'.

The report, commissioned by the North West London Strategic Health Authority, now NHS London, revealed:

 - Britten offered 'therapy' even though he had no professional qualifications to do so.
 - In 1998, two patients complained about Britten's 'inappropriate touching' but an investigation cleared him to carry on working.
 - He survived another probe in 1999.
 - He told a string of stories to gain patients' trust including claims he was dying of cancer.
 - Police investigated Britten but failed to find enough evidence to bring a prosecution.

Solicitor Sarah Harman, who is acting for 13 patients, claimed that at one stage Britten was pursuing abusive relationships with eight women at the same time.

'He was behaving like a predatory paedophile,' she said.

'These were very young women, some under 18, they were pre-pubescent because of the effects of anorexia, many of them were sexually inexperienced. Lives in some cases have been ruined.'

The NHS building in Pimlico, London, which formerly housed the Peter Dally Clinic where David Britten preyed on patients

The NHS building in Pimlico, London, which formerly housed the Peter Dally Clinic where David Britten preyed on patients

Britten was a 'skilled and practised manipulator'. Patients revealed how he followed a chillingly similar technique to win trust.

He would recount personal problems including claims that his mother had died on Christmas Day, his father was an alcoholic, his brother was disabled, or that he had lost a fiance in a car crash as they drove to ask her parents for permission to marry.

He also repeatedly claimed to be dying from cancer.

When girls told him they loved him, he reciprocated, but then tortured them by withholding his time, the report said.

The investigation discovered that Britten had attempted to separate patients from their parents.

He continued to see women after they had been discharged, and even held keys to their homes.

In all, there were three internal investigations which were hampered by changes to trust management.

It was only after the final one in March 2002, by which time he had disappeared, that his many victims started to come forward.

It took another two years for the Nursing and Midwifery Council to withdraw his registration, during which time he could have continued to work.

Alison McKenna, who chaired the investigation, said: 'The effect of David Britten's abuse of these vulnerable women cannot be overestimated-David Britten was a specialistin eating disorders and would have known that affected individuals can be very compliant and eager to please.

'He deliberately targeted vulnerable patients, grooming them for his own sexual gratification.'

The hunt for Britten continues. He has a Filipino wife, but no trace of him has been found there. The prospects for a prosecution if he is found are unclear.

Many victims have felt unable to talk to the police about their ordeals. Others who did talk said they had sex with him away from hospital premises, which at the time was not a crime.

The law is now much broader. Under the Sexual Offences Act 2003, it would automatically be a crime for a care worker to have sex with a mental health patient.

This cannot, however, be applied retrospectively.

Police have said if there are any new complaints or more recent evidence they would be willing to investigate.

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