Cygnet Hospital Harrogate

Updated 20 October 2026

We carried out an inspection of all 34 quality statements at Cygnet Hospital Harrogate on 21 and 22 July 2026 as it had not been inspected for 3 years.

The last inspection of this service took place in August 2023, at that inspection we rated the service good overall.

Cygnet Hospital Harrogate has been registered with CQC since 15 November 2010 as a service provided by Cygnet Health Care Limited to deliver the regulated activities: Treatment for disease, disorder and injury and Assessment or medical treatment for persons detained under the Mental Health Act 1983. The service had a controlled drugs accountable officer and a registered manager.

A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Registered persons have the legal responsibility for the service meeting the requirements of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated regulations. An accountable officer is a senior person within the organisation with the responsibility of monitoring the management of controlled drugs to prevent mishandling or misuse as required by law.

The hospital had two wards:

Haven Ward, a 19-bed acute admission ward for men.

Sanctuary Ward, a 17-bed acute admission ward for women.

At this inspection we inspected the service’s assessment service group of acute wards for adults of working age.

We rated the service as good.

Patients were safe and protected from avoidable harm and safety incidents were managed well. Staff worked well together as a team to benefit patients and the hospital worked well with other agencies. Staff treated patients with compassion and kindness and sought their feedback on the care provided.

Multi-disciplinary team discussions involved the patient, and patient's family where appropriate, in decision making and planning care and treatment. The hospital had good governance, including compliance audits, in place to ensure staff provided evidence-based care and treatment.

Updated 8 December 2025

Cygnet Behavioural Health Limited provides acute wards for adults of working age at Cygnet Hospital Harrogate. At the time of the inspection, the service provided treatment and care for individuals detained under the Mental Health Act, or as an informal patient, for males and females who have severe and enduring mental illness. At the time of our inspection there were 14 females admitted to Sanctuary ward and 18 males admitted to Haven ward.

We rated the service as good. The service was previously rated good.

Mental Health Act and Mental Capacity Act Compliance Summary

Staff completed mandatory training in the Mental Capacity Act (MCA), the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguarding (DoLS), Mental Health Act, the Code of Practice and the guiding principles. The compliance rates were 97% and 95% respectively.

The staff we spoke with had a good understanding of mental capacity and were confident about how to assess it. Staff told us they took all practical steps to enable patients to make their own decisions and provided good examples regarding raising safeguarding concerns.

Patients had easy access to information about independent mental health advocacy. The independent mental health advocate visited patients, when needed.

We reviewed 7 care records and found evidence that people's needs were met in line with current guidance. Capacity assessments were undertaken when appropriate. All detained patients were made aware of their rights and patient restrictions were regularly reviewed to maximise their independence.

Multi-disciplinary team discussions involved the patient and patient's family in decision making and planning care and treatment. The hospital had good governance and compliance audits in place to ensure staff provided evidence-based care and treatment.