'She took over their lives': Cancer nurse struck off after abusing position to gain inheritance

Ian Percival was walking his dog, Snowy, along the coast near his home in South Wales, when he met Anita George, a cancer nurse at a local Swansea hospital. It was the same route he took every night, but this time he stopped. 

"She happened to be on the promenade and crying about her relationship, I believe," says Ian's daughter Helen, who doesn't think that meeting was a coincidence.

What happened next set in motion a chain of events that would lead to allegations of financial grooming, neglect and an NHS nurse being struck off.

Ian Percival was a wealthy businessman in his 70s, who worked as an investor in property and an insurance broker. Part of his business involved renting homes to NHS staff locally.

"Dad was a workaholic, he loved it," his son, Richard, says fondly.

Ian and his wife, Margaret, who were married for more than 50 years, were well-known and well-liked figures in the Swansea area.

Anita was a seemingly trustworthy nurse - who, just three days after meeting Ian, moved into one of his properties to help look after Margaret, who had mobility problems. It was a private arrangement, a deal struck personally, not through the NHS.

"I was doubtful about her from day one," says Richard.

This is the first time Ian's children have spoken publicly about what happened, from their home in Brisbane, Australia.

'She took over their lives'

As time went on, they became increasingly concerned about how involved Anita was becoming with their parents. When Ian was diagnosed with cancer, she began also caring for him.

"She took over our parents' lives. She was constantly with them," Richard recalls. Increasingly, he felt she was coming between their parents and isolating them from their family.

"Mum was getting excluded," says Richard. "I felt that she [Anita] had full control, which I have never witnessed before. I just don't understand how, after mum and dad being together for 52 years, things she did changed everything."

Helen says Anita's professional credentials initially reassured her. "I trusted her because she was a nurse at a local hospital."

But in the months before Ian's death in December 2016, she could tell things had drastically changed. Anita was refusing to take care of their mother, Helen claims. Instead, she focused all her attention on Ian.

It wasn't until their father died, that Helen and Richard became aware of the extent of Anita's involvement with Ian. They believe she'd struck up an inappropriate personal relationship, manipulating him for financial gain.

As they investigated, they moved Margaret to live with them in Australia, where she later died in 2018.

"On dad's computer, we managed to find some evidence. We thought, this is crazy. I don't understand... so it made us dig deeper," says Richard.

Cash, a car and property

Ian had given her nearly £15,000 in cash and shares, a car and left her a property worth hundreds of thousands of pounds.

"I felt sick because I knew this was her doing," recalls Helen. "The first thing that came to my mind was that he was financially groomed... she had one motive - to get money."

"Only when the will was read did I realise how skewed it was."

Helen believes the will had "huge input" from Anita.

Anita George said she was simply receiving gifts from a friend - but this is not just a story about money and material goods. On Ian's medical records she had listed herself as his next of kin, even as his daughter and adoptive daughter. All this without his wife or children's knowledge.

She was managing his hospital appointments, taking his bloods at home, accessing medical equipment. How did Helen feel about a woman she barely knew passing herself off as her father's daughter?

"It's devastating. It should never have happened. That's a massive failing by the NHS."

It has taken eight years for the family of Ian Percival to achieve any form of justice.

Struck off as a nurse

In December 2024, the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) carried out a hearing into the allegations - and found that Anita George had breached professional standards and abused the position of trust as a registered nurse to gain inheritance from a patient.

It ruled that her actions were motivated by the pursuit of financial gain, and it struck her off from the nursing register - its toughest sanction. The NMC report outlines how Ian and Margaret's isolation, poor health and geographical separation from their children made them particularly vulnerable.

Anita George declined our request for an interview.

During the hearing her legal team argued this all happened outside of her formal employment as a nurse. The situation was unlikely to happen again as her personal life has changed and she's now married, they added.

Swansea Bay University Health Board, which runs the hospital, is now carrying out a review into any possible failures:

"In light of the findings of the NMC's hearing we are appalled and want to state clearly to the family that we're very sorry about what happened. We will be reviewing this case to see if there are any learnings that need to be taken into account. It is important, however, to clarify that the inappropriate financial relationships did not relate to care provided within an NHS context."

South Wales Police carried out an investigation at the time but no charges were brought.

It says it will reopen the case if new lines of inquiry are found.

Financial exploitation of the elderly

The case of Anita George and Ian Percival highlights the growing issue of financial exploitation of the elderly. The Hourglass charity, which works exclusively in this field, says the problem is now at "epidemic" levels.

The number of calls it has received since 2017 has risen by 182% from around 4,500 to 12,700.

In just 14% of economic abuse cases in the last three years, £53m has been reported stolen from the elderly.

It says awareness among the public of what constitutes economic abuse is "shockingly low" - with a poll last year finding more than 26% of people did not believe forcing an older relative to change their will was an act of abuse.

The charity says abuse of the elderly comes in many forms including financial, psychological and physical.

"There are lots of cases we've dealt with where the enormity of the abuse is only obvious once the person has passed away," says Richard Robinson, the charity's chief executive.

"But there is another issue here; lots of older people don't want to criminalise their family or their carers because if they [do so] they'll be left to fend for themselves or they'll be put into a home."

While Ian's children hope police will reopen the case, they also want tougher rules on how carers become involved with patients. Currently, nurses must adhere to the NMC's professional standards known as the Code, which include acting with "honesty and integrity" in any financial dealings.

"We want legislation put in place so that carers can't be caring without proper background checks, the next of kin cannot just be somebody they've known for two years."

'Someone finally listened'

Richard added that they were "relieved" Anita George was struck off following the damning report by the NMC.

"Somebody listened to us and took our evidence onboard. You can't have someone doing what she did - using her position as a nurse...to gain their trust."

While the pair cherish their memories of their father what happened with Anita George has tarnished the end of his life, for them.

Neither of his parents deserved to suffer this type of abuse, says Richard.

"Dad was a genuine hard-working guy who loved his family. It's just horrible," he says, grimly.

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