Lorna Doran moved into a Liverpool care home in August 2025 but her son said she was 'locked out at 3am' and 'physically abused'15:47, 26 Aug 2026A mother with early-onset dementia was locked out of her care home at 3am in the cold, her furious son said.‌Lorna Doran, 69, moved into the Mersey Parks Care Home, in Liverpool, back in August 2025. Lorna's son Rob Ashcroft, 36, said his mother's anxiety and dementia had "worsened" at the home and claimed she had been "verbally and physically abused at night". The son also said his vulnerable mum was locked outside in the middle of the night.‌The mother was moved out of Mersey Parks earlier this month and taken to another care home following her ordeal.‌Rob, according to the Liverpool Echo, said: "Her anxiety and dementia have worsened, and she is in a much worse place because she was being verbally and physically abused at night. On one occasion, she was locked outside at 3am in the cold after getting up to wander. You just do not expect that when you put a family member into a care home to be looked after."An area director for HC-One, which runs the care home, Ayman Bakr messaged the son and said: "Your mum very sadly did experience abuse at Mersey Parks, alongside other residents within the community. The investigation involved gathering witness accounts, reviewing relevant records, and working closely with the appropriate external agencies to ensure that all concerns were fully examined."‌Bakr said the "safety, dignity, and wellbeing of our residents are of the utmost importance" and said it was "deeply regrettable" the mum was "affected by the actions of an individual who failed to uphold the standards of care expected".The area director added: "On behalf of the home management team and myself, I would like to offer our sincere apologies. No resident should ever have to experience anything of this nature while in our care, and we remain committed to learning from this incident and maintaining the highest possible standards of safeguarding and resident care." The care home operator said it had suspended a member of staff, who later quit their job.‌Minutes from a meeting between Lorna's family, the homes manager's and a social worker from Liverpool City Council said the treatment the woman experienced was "disgusting and despicable".Home manager Sue Rush, according to the ECHO, in the meeting said the mum was taken to her room "against her will", shouted at and was "purposely" locked out of the home for around 15 minutes. Rush added: "This is psychological abuse … This behaviour is disgusting and despicable and does not reflect what we stand for."HC-One reported the incidents to the Care Quality Commission (CQC), the Disclosure and Barring Service, Liverpool City Council and Merseyside Police. A spokesperson for the force told the Mirror: "We were contacted in May this year reporting concern for residents at Mersey Parks care home in Mill Street, Dingle. Enquiries remain ongoing to establish if any criminal offences have been committed."‌A spokesperson for HC-One told the ECHO: "The safety, dignity and wellbeing of our residents are our highest priorities, and we take all safeguarding concerns extremely seriously. We are deeply sorry for the distress and upset this matter has caused Ms Doran and her family."The provider said it took "immediate action" after concerns were raised. It added: "During Ms Doran's time at the home, her care needs changed and we sought advice from our external partners to ensure she received the most appropriate support. Following assessments by the relevant professionals, it was concluded that she required a level and type of care that the home was unable to provide, and this was discussed with Ms Doran’s family as part of the care planning process.A CQC spokesperson said they spoke to leaders at the home and Liverpool City Council after they were made aware of the incidents. They added: "We assessed that there was no ongoing risk to people living at Mersey Parks Care Home as a result of this incident."Article continues belowA Liverpool City Council spokesperson said they were "not able to comment on individual cases" but were aware of the incident and have been working with them since.