Health and Care Professions Council determination — substantive hearing
HCPTS panel suspends Iain R St Leger for 12 months
The occupational therapist admitted falsifying records, failing vulnerable service users and working for months in breach of an interim suspension.
MedicWatch editorial · Published 16 April 2025 · Updated 23 September 2026
Suspension (suspended from practice) — 1 year
Data last checked: 23 September 2026Report a correction
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The regulator imposed a fixed-term suspension in this decision. Its start date, appeal provisions and any later review affect whether it is currently in force. Check the official register for the practitioner's current status.
Concerning Iain R St Leger, occupational therapist (Health and Care Professions Council OT44128).
Decision date: 16 April 2025 · Hearing started 7 April 2025 and ended 16 April 2025
In plain English
The HCPTS panel suspended occupational therapist Iain R St Leger for 12 months after he admitted repeated service-user failings, falsifying records, working while suspended and misleading a regulatory panel. His insight was beginning to develop, but the panel found an ongoing risk of repetition and concluded that conditions would not protect the public or maintain confidence.
Charges
Mr St Leger failed to communicate with service users, make required home visits or act on identified needs; falsified reports and case notes; continued working for about eight months while suspended; falsely told an HCPC review panel that he was not practising; and failed to disclose the suspension and proceedings to his employer and agency.
Findings
The panel accepted his admissions and found repeated, serious misconduct and dishonesty rather than lack of competence. His developing insight was at an early stage and the risk of repetition remained, so conditions were insufficient. Taking account of his admissions and engagement, the panel imposed a 12-month suspension rather than striking him off.
Mitigating and aggravating factors
Mitigating factors
No previous fitness to practise history; 16 years of occupational therapy practice with no evidence of other concerns; full and unequivocal admissions before and at the hearing; some insight into the misconduct, although at an early stage; some limited evidence concerning his health at the time.
Aggravating factors
His dishonesty at Hertfordshire County Council abused trust and covered up failures to visit service users or act on identified risks; the dishonesty was repeated across his council work, his disregard of the interim suspension while working in Jersey, his failure to disclose the order and his lie to an Investigating Committee panel; he actively falsified multiple case notes and assessments; the practice failings were repeated against multiple vulnerable service users; those failings and falsified records exposed multiple service users to a real risk of significant harm; he failed to raise concerns about missed home visits and instead concealed them.
Source
All facts on this page are drawn from the publicly published Health and Care Professions Council determination linked below. MedicWatch does not editorialise the regulator’s findings.
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