Ten staff members have been arrested in connection with the alleged abuse of patients at Whorlton Hall hospital in north-east England following a BBC Panorama documentary, Durham police said.

Seven men and three women, all members of staff who worked at the unit, were arrested at addresses in Barnard Castle, Bishop Auckland, Darlington and Stockton on Friday morning, police said.

The investigation was launched after a Panorama reporter, Olivia Davies, went undercover at the 17-bed hospital, near Barnard Castle, which cares for patients with severe autism and learning disabilities. Davies secretly filmed staff while she worked shifts at Whorlton Hall over a two-month period.

The documentary, broadcast on Wednesday night, alleged a number of abuses and instances of neglect.

Durham police said it was asking the production team for help with gathering evidence. A spokesman for the force said: “As this is an ongoing inquiry, we are unable to comment further at this time, other than to repeat that our immediate priority has been to work with other agencies to safeguard the victims at the centre of the allegations and their families.

“The investigation is at an early stage and is expected to take some time to complete.”

Cygnet Health Care, the US-owed healthcare company that owns Whorlton Hall, said before the broadcast that it had suspended 16 members of staff believed to have been involved and moved 12 patients to other units.

The Care Quality Commission regulator has said it is reviewing all Cygnet services and has carried out unannounced inspections of several sites.