A SCHEME that tracks mentally ill patients so they are traceable if they abscond has gone live after two successful trials.

The system at Royal Bethlem Hospital is the first time any such device has been introduced within NHS mental health services.

It works by GPS technology with anyone on leave from the hospital’s medium secure unit River House having to wear a tamper proof device.

This provides information about their whereabouts when they are outside the secure perimeter of the unit in Monks Orchard Road, Beckenham.

If they are late back from their leave then the police can be notified of their location and pick them up.

The scheme has been brought in at the hospital, which is run by South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust (SLaM), after two trials.

Patients volunteered to take part in a small scale trial at the end of last year and a larger scale trial with 35 tracking devices took place in the spring.

SLaM now has 60 of the GPS devices.

The clinical director of SLaM’s forensic services Professor Tom Fahy said: "The aim for virtually all of our patients is to eventually rehabilitate them safely and well back into the community.

“It's a necessary part of the rehabilitation process that patients will take leave from hospital.

"These devices enable us to confirm the patient's location when they are on leave, ensure that they adhere to the conditions of their leave and it really gives us an extra layer of safety."