Although the five trusts remained separate legal entities, they held joint board meetings and shared a management team.
This is further evidenced in the Croydon PCT Annual Report 2011/12, which demonstrates that the number of invitations for Health Checks had exceeded their target during the period in question.
Peter Brambleby observed a systematic culture of dishonesty and bullying in the NHS, and cited personal experience from other posts, but was not able to provide any verifiable proof that this occurred in Croydon.
In September 2012 Ann Radmore, chief executive of NHS South West London, gave evidence to the South West London Joint Health and Overview Scrutiny Committee which whilst reported in local newspapers that officers "consciously" hid NHS Croydon's £23 million deficit, is contrary to the main body of the evidence she had given.
Local press coverage indicated that the committee itself had political implications with the chair being of the opposing party to the two main councillors involved.