AN eleventh former employee at Winterbourne View private hospital has pleaded guilty to charges of abuse.

Michael Ezenugu, 29, of White City in London, had previously denied the charges but at Bristol Crown Court today he changed his plea and admitted two charges of ill treatment under the Mental Health Act. He was the last former employee at the hospital, on Vantage Park Industrial Estate in Hambrook, to admit to charges brought by Avon and Somerset Constabulary.

Ezenugu, along with 10 of his former colleagues who had already pleaded guilty to 36 charges, have now admitted to a total of 38 charges following the airing of a BBC Panorama programme exposing the abuse last May.

The other 10 are Alison Dove, 25, of Chipperfield Drive, Kingswood, Wayne Rogers, 31, of Purton Close, Kingswood, Neil Ferguson, 27, of Guest Avenue, Emerson's Green, Sookalingum Appoo, 58, of Dial Lane, Downend, Kelvin Fore, a nurse, 33, of Ellesmere Walk, Middlesbrough, Jason Gardiner, 43, of Mellent Avenue, Hartcliffe, Graham Doyle, 25, of Bradley Road, Patchway, Daniel Brake, 27, of Beechen Drive, Fishponds, and Holly Draper, 23, of The Old Orchard, Mangotsfield.

Following the change in plea, police praised patients and their families for helping the investigation.

DCI Louisa Rolfe said: "I wish to acknowledge the support and patience of the victims and their families throughout our inquiry. We were shocked by the Panorama programme as many people were. The voice of the victim has been central to our investigation into this case.

"The investigation has always been about the criminal actions of 11 individuals working at Winterbourne View. The 11 individuals abused the trust of victims and that of their relatives and friends. "Had it not been for the actions of individuals who raised concerns about the neglect and cruelty suffered by the victims at Winterbourne View, this wholly unacceptable behaviour would have continued unchecked. "We now await sentencing which will bring the criminal justice process to a final conclusion."

Ann Redropp, head of the complex case team at the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), said the charges had been considered disability hate crimes.

She added: "Safety and security, and the ability to live free from fear and harassment, are fundamental human rights. The kind of offending that took place at Winterbourne View undermined these rights in an appalling and systematically brutal way.

"The CPS has treated these as disability hate crimes, which we regard as particularly serious. Disability hate crimes are based on ignorance, prejudice and hate. Disabled people can be victims of crime due to their perceived vulnerability, particularly where there is an unequal relationship, such as where the perpetrator is the victim's carer. At Winterbourne View, people who should have been able to trust their carers had that trust cruelly and repeatedly abused."

She said the CPS wanted the seriousness of disability hate crimes to be taken into consideration when determining the sentences of the 11 defendants.