Stafford Hospital Trust in court over patient deaths

The NHS Trust which ran Stafford Hospital is due to appear in court to answer criminal charges related to the deaths of four elderly patients.

Officials at the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) announced charges against Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust last month over the deaths between 2005 and May 2014.

The trust, which was replaced by new governance structures in November last year, was at the centre of an independent investigation and a public inquiry into "appalling" levels of care between 2005 and 2009.

Although the trust no longer provides patient services, it remains in place as a legal entity and is facing four separate charges brought under the Health and Safety at Work Act.

A first hearing in the case is due to be held at Stafford Magistrates' Court.

The charges relate to the deaths of Lillian Tucker, 77, in 2005; Ivy Bunn, 90 in 2008; Edith Bourne, 83, in 2013, and 89-year-old Patrick Daly in May last year.