The Times of London has reported that a nursing home in Eastbourne, England has been accused of scheduling visits with prostitutes on a regular basis for residents of the home. The nursing home has been identified as Chaseley.
The residents meet with the prostitutes in a special room and place a “special red sock” on the door so no one disrupts them. The paper claims that caregivers check on the room every 15 minutes or so. The nursing home operates mostly for former soldiers.
In an interview with British tabloid, The Sun, Chaseley manager Sue Wyatt said the following:
“People have needs, so sometimes we might need to set up a room in a certain way. We are there to help. We use a private consultant who arranges everything. They are an independent person who works in the home. She puts people in touch with people. We respect our residents as individuals so that’s why we help this to happen. The fact is sex workers are allowed by law to sexually enable people but care workers are not. So, if someone asked, we would often call in a professional, someone trained to do that. It’s known as the resident’s ‘special visit.’ If you have a resident who is groping staff, one way of resolving that problem is to get a sex worker in who is trained to deal with that situation. But most of the time, these are people who feel frustrated by a primeval need they cannot fulfill. So we would help them with the phone, dial the number, or use the computer to contact someone who could help. If we refused, we would not be delivering a holistic level of care.”
The former manager of Chaseley, Helena Barrow, told The Sun: “If you have a resident who is groping staff, one way of resolving that problem is to get a sex worker in who is trained to deal with that situation. The fact is sex workers are allowed by law to sexually enable people but care workers are not.”
Chaseley is being investigated by East Sussex County Council as a result of the prostitution claims. The council wants to make sure that the residents are not being harmed. A statement released by the council said the following:
“We will examine our concerns through the Pan-Sussex Multi-Agency Policy and Procedures for Safeguarding Adults at risk. This has the potential to place vulnerable East Sussex residents at risk of exploitation and abuse.”