More than 40 seriously ill children have been sent for treatment outside the West of England in the last 10 months after two mental health units in Bristol closed.

Protect our NHS said the shocking situation adds to the trauma and anguish to families already in a desperate situation, but health bosses said it was unforeseen.

The Priory closed its intensive care unit in July, and then its Brunel ward shut in September, while the Riverside at Blackberry Hill Hospital has been closed for refurbishments for more than a year.

Retired GP Dr Charlotte Peterson raised the issue with the Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire (BNSSG) Clinical Commissioning Group’s governing body earlier this month.

“In the last 10 months 42 young people and children have been admitted to residential beds outside the BNSSG area,” said the Protect our NHS member.

“This tragic statistic represents a system that sends seriously ill young people far from their family and friends, thus adding to the trauma and family anguish of an already desperate situation.

“How can this have come about in the fifth richest country in the world? How is it that since the closure of beds in the Priory nothing has been done to resolve the lack of local inpatient facilities?”

The Priory blamed its closure on an unsustainable reliance on agency staff after a damning Care Quality Commission report raised concerns about the safety and quality of the services.

Closed since last March, the Riverside unit was due to reopen in March but that has been pushed back to June because the roof needs to be replaced.

The situation means there are currently no mental health beds for children and young people in Bristol, with the nearest in Devon.

CCG chief exec Julia Ross said: “Sadly, children do always go outside BNSSG for some bed-based services.

“It was an unknown fact that the Priory would close at the same time as the Riverside unit was closed for very much needed reconfiguration. When it opens it will be a much better and more appropriate environment in which children can be treated.

“We’ve been working closely with NHS England and AWP (the Avon and Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership) to ensure that, as far as possible, we had alternative services in place that would prevent young people needing to go into bed-based services.

“Our strategy is that children only go into bed-based services where that is absolutely the only option. We work hard with partners across the system to try and avoid the need for bed-based care – it’s often not the best thing for young people with mental health needs.”

The meeting heard that the 15 beds at the Riverside will be complemented by the day services that it currently provides.

Ms Ross said the CCG had approved a business case for a “very significant piece of work” to address the impact on Covid-19 on people’s mental health needs.