After Panorama exposed the mistreatment of vulnerable patients at Winterbourne View hospital, 11 staff were charged. All have now pleaded guilty.

Mark Goldring, chief executive of disability charity Mencap, says the situation is severe for similar facilities but smaller homes are less likely to suffer such problems.

"We think that institutions such as Winterbourne View, which confine people for extended periods of time, far away from home, are far more prone to abuse than small, locally-commissioned, locally-run community-based facilities," he said.

"People can live close to home, be visited by their family and be in and out far, far quicker."

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