Care Commission to investigate Good Shepherd Centre

The Scottish Commission for the Regulation of Care is to investigate the care provided by a residential home from which two teenage girls absconded before apparently committing suicide.

Georgia Rowe, 14, and her friend Neve Lafferty, 15, left the Good Shepherd Centre open school in Bishopton, Renfrewshire, on 4 October and fell to their deaths off nearby Erskine Bridge.

The commission is preparing to launch an inquiry into standards of care at the home. It will begin as soon as the police investigation into the deaths is complete, which is likely to be later this week.

Over the following six to eight weeks, it will look into any issues identified by the police or members of staff.

Previous incidents

The commission said there had been 232 reports to the police in 2008 of young people going missing from the centre, which is run by the Catholic charity the Cora Foundation.

Past problems

The Good Shepherd Centre was investigated by police and the Care Commission last year after some of its residents claimed they were being abused. The allegations were refuted and no further action was taken.

External information

The Scottish Commission for the Regulation of Care