BOSSES at Calderstones Hospital are poised for a major security crackdown after a series of safety breaches culminated in a patient going on the run from armed police.

The incident, during which the man was believed to have a knife, came days after a patient attempted to strangle a member of staff and just a couple of weeks after police were called in to investigate an alleged assault on a nine-year-old girl.

The move has been welcomed by Ribble Valley MP Nigel Evans after unions expressed concern about the health and safety of staff working at the Whalley hospital as a result of repeated security breaches.

It is a year since the mental health unit faced calls from the Lancashire Evening Telegraph, MPs and unions for a security review after a series of attacks and patient escapes.

The improvements, due to be considered at a board meeting today, are contained in 20 recommendations and are understood to include fencing the remaining 25 per cent of the Calderstones site, which is currently insecure.

They are also thought to include restricting public access to the hospital grounds, tightening exit security and improving training and expertise of staff.

The recommendations were drawn up by a special committee, which included a range of experts in mental health provision which had no connections with the Whalley hospital, after incidents last year.

A police helicopter, dog handlers and firearms officers were drafted in to search for the patient who went on the run from the hospital's medium secure unit -- where sex offenders and arsonists are held along with other patients -- at 2.30pm on Monday.

Police caught him just under an hour later, less than two miles from the hospital. He has been put in the hospital's most secure area under 24-hour supervision.

The patient, who is in his mid 20s, is a long term patient who was referred there by the courts in 1995.

A member of staff, who was in the town, spotted him and alerted police by mobile phone. There was a chase across fields.

Police are also investigating an attack on a member of staff by another patient last week.

It is understood the victim, who returned to work but then went off sick after the attack, drove himself home after receiving medical treatment from the on-site doctor.

Staff who witnessed the incident on the Chestnut Drive section of the medium secure unit said the victim's lips turned blue and he lost consciousness during the attack by the patient, who has severe learning difficulties and who was referred to the unit on health grounds.

The incident involving the nine-year-old girl, who was visiting the hospital, and a male patient, who was not from the medium secure unit, is also being investigated by police. The girl fell in the hospital grounds but it is not clear whether she was pushed.

Ribble Valley Tory MP Nigel Evans, who had an 90-minute meeting with Calderstones bosses yesterday along with local Conservative councillor Joyce Holgate, said: "This has gone on for too long. Something needs to be done to ensure the security of staff, patients and local residents.

"I shall ensure that if extra financial resources are needed that the case is put directly to Health Secretary Alan Milburn in Parliament. I am not prepared to see extra security measures that are needed fail for lack of government NHS funds."

Sgt Mark Sharples, of Clitheroe Police, confirmed police had led the search for the paedophile on Monday and said: "The staff member indicated to us that the patient had a knife with him, which was when we brought in the firearms officers. We would use a helicopter for any search covering a wide area of green spaces, like we had in this instance."

A spokesman from Calderstones NHS Trust said: "An initial investigation has revealed that, after leaving the unit, he was able to get out of the hospital grounds because a portion of the property developer's perimeter site fencing at the rear of the hospital was left unsecured.

"An internal review of procedures is under way and immediate action is being taken to prevent a similar occurrence."

Bill MacMillan, regional spokesman for the health union UNISON, said: "Our understanding is that it was a patient and it was inappropriate for him to be out of the unit.

"That raises issues about the staffing levels for us, and the quality of supervision of such patients but in this case, there is also an issue for the safety of the local community."

Mr MacMillan said the assault on a member of staff also raised concerns. He added: "This member of staff was unconscious as a result of the attack, during which he was strangled.

"What we are most concerned with is the health and safety issues this raises, which is something that is a constant agenda item for us at Calderstones.

"We do not know at the moment whether attack alarms or different bleeping arrangements would have worked in this instance, but this will emerge later. This member of staff drove himself home afterwards, and did not receive hospital treatment until later.

"As a union we believe it should be zero tolerance with people assaulting our members regardless of their learning needs of health."