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Explains legal terms that you may find when dealing with mental health-specific law.
This is where you're sent home from hospital without any conditions to follow. It's different from a conditional discharge.
Absolute human rights can't be taken away under any circumstances or for any reason. The right to a fair trial (Article 6) is an example of an absolute right.
The Advisory Conciliation and Arbitration Service (ACAS) is an organisation that provides:
ACAS offers a free 'early conciliation' service. If you want to take a disability discrimination challenge to the Employment Tribunal, you have to contact ACAS first. You need proof of this before you can start a claim.
This means you're free from your criminal charge.
An advance decision is an instruction about what medical treatment you want to refuse, if you lose capacity to make decisions in the future. It's legally binding.
See our pages on the Mental Capacity Act for more information.
An advance statement is a written document that sets out your preferences. It's not legally binding. You can ask a professional to follow this document if you ever lose capacity to make these decisions yourself.
See our pages on the Mental Capacity Act for more information.
An advocate is a person who can listen to you and speak for you. Having an advocate can be helpful in situations where you're finding it difficult to make your views known. Or to make people listen to them and take them into account.
See our pages on advocacy for more information.
Certain organisations have a duty to anticipate the difficulties that disabled people may face.
This means they must think and plan ahead to make sure that disabled people can access their services. This includes thinking about reasonable adjustments they could make.
An appointee is someone to help manage your benefits for you if you lose capacity to manage them yourself. They're appointed by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP).
If the police realise, or are told, that you have a mental health problem, then you have the right to be accompanied by an appropriate adult.
They should be an adult who's not part of the police. They could be:
But they can't be your solicitor.
An appropriate adult should:
See our pages on police and mental health for more information.
This is a medical professional who's called to the police station if you need medical assessment or treatment.
This means medical treatment for your mental health problem that is:
This is a mental health professional who has certain responsibilities related to your healthcare. They're approved to do this by the Department of Health (England) or by the Welsh Ministers (Wales).
Approved clinicians may be:
Some decisions under the Mental Health Act can only be taken by approved clinicians. Like deciding on your medication or giving you permission to leave the ward or hospital.
AMHPs are mental health professionals who can carry out duties under the Mental Health Act. They've been approved by a local social services authority. They're responsible for coordinating your assessment and admission to hospital if you're sectioned.
They may be:
The police can stop and detain you if they think you're involved in a crime.
Each human right is referred to as a separate article in the Human Rights Act 1998. For example, Article 2: Right to life. These articles come from the European Convention on Human Rights.
Citizens Advice has more information about Human Rights including the Human Rights Act and the articles within it.
An attorney is an adult who you've appointed to make decisions on your behalf. For example about your welfare, property, or financial affairs.
You need an attorney if you can't make these decisions yourself. If you lack capacity to appoint one, the Court of Protection will appoint a deputy to perform this role.
A health and welfare attorney makes decisions about things like:
A property and financial affairs attorney makes decisions about things like:
See our pages on the Mental Capacity Act for more information.
An authorised person can be someone who:
See our pages on the Mental Capacity Act for more information.
Release from custody, possibly with certain conditions attached. For example to return to the police station, or to go to court at a certain time.
This is the report stopping the discharge of someone under section when an application has been made by the nearest relative. It's written by the responsible clinician.
A check of your criminal record which will show your unspent convictions and cautions. You can apply for a basic DBS check yourself if you live or work in England or Wales.
Health professionals must act in your best interests before taking certain steps that affect your care and treatment.
The Mental Capacity Act has a best interests checklist. This outlines what health professionals need to consider before taking an action or decision for you while you lack capacity.
See our pages on the Mental Capacity Act for more information.
'Capacity' means the ability to understand information and make decisions about your life. Sometimes it can also mean the ability to communicate decisions about your life.
See our pages on the Mental Capacity Act for more information.
This is the law which sets out the local authorities’ duties around adult social care. Specifically:
It applies in England only.
Care and Treatment Planning relates to people who live in Wales. It's a way that secondary mental health services are assessed, planned, coordinated and reviewed. It comes from a law called the Mental Health (Wales) Measure 2010.
Secondary mental health services include the community mental health team (CMHT), assertive outreach team and early intervention team.
You should get:
See our pages on leaving hospital for more information.
A care coordinator is your main point of contact and support if you need ongoing mental health care. They:
They're also responsible for doing the assessment to work out your health and social care needs under the care programme approach (CPA).
They could be any mental health professional. But they usually work as part of the community mental health team. For example:
It depends what's most appropriate for your situation.
The Care Programme Approach (CPA) is a way that secondary mental health services are assessed, planned, coordinated and reviewed. It only applies to people who live in England.
Secondary mental health services include:
You should get:
See our pages on leaving hospital for more information.
This is an assessment for carers, to find out what the needs for support are.
This could be two different things:
Some cautions are described as 'conditional'. This means you must follow certain rules for a period of time after the caution is issued, to avoid being prosecuted for the offence. A caution with no conditions is described as a 'simple' caution.
This is the form you use if you're unhappy about the content of a DBS certificate.
This is a document that confirms:
It should be signed by a certificate provider. You need to include a certificate of capacity with your forms when naming someone as your attorney.
Being charged means you've been formally accused of committing a crime. You will get a paper called a 'charge sheet'. This will have details of:
A child is a person under the age of 18.
Circuit judges are senior judges in England and Wales. They sit in:
Circuit judges sit below High Court judges but above district judges. They will be a barrister or solicitor with at least 7 years of experience.
These are the rules which set out how a case should get conducted in the civil courts in England and Wales. Civil court is different to criminal court.
The aim of these rules is to make the court procedures fairer and easier to understand.
‘Bringing a claim’ means going to court to try to put right a breach of your legal rights. You can also bring a claim in other areas of law.
CCGs were replaced by integrated care boards (ICBs) in 2022.
A clinical negligence claim is when you ask for compensation because the care a professional gave you was:
This is government guidance that tells local authorities how they should meet their legal obligations under the Care Act. And also the regulations under it.
Local authorities must follow it. Unless they can show a legal reason why they can't.
You might also sometimes hear people call this:
There are seven Codes of Practice which are guidance to local authorities and local health boards. They explain how to meet obligations under the Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act 2014.
Local authorities and local health boards must follow the guidance in the Codes of Practice. Unless they can show legal reasons why they can't.
A cohabitee is person who lives with another person as if they are married, but without being legally married.
This is a type of sentence where you won't have to go to prison but you might have some conditions in the community. This might be:
CMHTs support people with mental health problems living in the community. And also their carers.
The team may include:
If you've been sectioned and treated in hospital, your responsible clinician can put you on a CTO.
This means that they can discharge you from the section and you can leave hospital. But you might have to meet certain conditions. For example:
Sometimes you could be made to go back to hospital. For example:
See our pages on CTOs for more information.
This is where you can leave hospital but have to follow some conditions. For example, living at a particular place or meeting healthcare professionals. If you break these conditions, you can be sent back to hospital.
You can only be put under a conditional discharge if you're a restricted patient under a restriction direction, and also:
Or
This is an arrangement that law firms sometimes make to pay for your legal case. It means that you only pay for your lawyer's work if you win your case and get compensation.
If your claim is successful, you'll pay for your lawyer's costs, as well as an extra percentage of the compensation. This is called a 'premium'.
If your claim is unsuccessful, you won't have to pay for your lawyer's legal work.
Consent means that you agree to something.
The law says that consent is only valid if you:
This is a package of care for people who:
You don't have to pay anything for CHC – it's arranged and paid for by the NHS.
This is a finding by a court in Great Britain or overseas that you've committed a criminal act.
This includes service disciplinary offences in the Court Martial if you are or were a member of the armed forces.
It also includes when you have been given a conditional discharge or an absolute discharge for an offence. You will have a conviction for an offence whether you pleaded guilty or were found guilty following a trial.
This is a court which deals with civil matters. Not criminal matters.
There are fees for starting a claim in the county court. But if you have a low income, you might be able to pay a reduced amount - or none at all. That's called a ‘fee remission’.
Cases in the county court are in one of 3 tracks:
Fast track and multi-track cases are costly. And if you don't win your case, you usually have to pay the other person’s legal costs.
The Court of Appeal deals with appeals from the Crown Court.
The Court of Protection can make decisions and appoint deputies to act on your behalf. Specifically if you can't make decisions about your personal health, finance or welfare.
See our pages on the Mental Capacity Act for more information.
This is a record of convictions held on the Police National Computer (PNC) for people convicted of crimes.
This is one of the 2 types of criminal courts. It's the higher of the 2 courts, above the Magistrates' Court.
This is the police officer in charge of running the police custody area. They're responsible for your care and welfare while in the station.
This is money awarded by a court. It's paid as compensation for your loss or injury.
The Data Protection Act 2018 is the law that sets out how organisations must handle and process your information. It also gives you rights to access personal information held about you. And rights to correct personal information held about you if it's wrong.
This is the person to whom the information relates. If you want to access information held about you, then you are the data subject.
This is the document issued following an application to the DBS for a criminal records check. It will contain the personal information you've given and the result of the checks the DBS has done.
This is a check of your criminal record. It's carried out by the Disclosure and Barring Service. It used to be called a 'CRB check'.
A debt relief order is a way for you to have your debts written off. You have to owe less than £50,000 in total and have savings or valuable items worth less than £2,000 in total. You don’t have to pay anything towards your debts for 12 months. And your creditors can't chase you for what you owe them during this time. A DRO stays in your credit file for 6 years from the date it was approved. You can’t have a DRO if you own your own home.
A court can make a declaration of incompatibility if it finds that a particular law has not obeyed the Human Rights Act 1998. The government then looks at the law and decides whether it should be changed.
A deprivation of liberty is where your liberty is taken away from you. This means you're not free to leave and you're under continuous supervision and control. The Mental Capacity Act says that the law allows this only in very specific situations.
This may happen to you if you need to go into a care home or hospital to get care or treatment. But you don't have the capacity to make decisions about this yourself.
If you're in a hospital or care home, your liberty can normally only be taken away if health professionals use the procedures called the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards. This protects you from having your liberty taken away without good reason.
See our pages on the Mental Capacity Act for more information.
A deputy is a person the Court of Protection appoints to make decisions for you once you have lost capacity to make them yourself. A deputy usually makes decisions about finances and property.
The court can appoint a deputy to take healthcare and personal care decisions. But this is relatively rare.
A person is detained if they're being kept in hospital under section and are not free to leave.
If you're charged with murder, but can show that your mental health condition made you commit the crime, the court may convict you of manslaughter instead. This is called diminished responsibility.
'Disability' has a special legal meaning under the Equality Act. This is broader than the usual way you might understand the word.
The Equality Act says that you have a disability if you have an impairment that's either physical or mental. And the impairment has a substantial, adverse and long term effect on your normal daily activities.
When someone is treated worse because of their physical or mental health condition, this is known as 'disability discrimination'.
The Equality Act is the law that explains what a disability is. It also explains when worse treatment counts as discrimination.
Generally, you have to show that you have a disability before you can challenge worse treatment as disability discrimination. The exceptions to this are if you received worse treatment because your employer thinks you're disabled but you're not, or because of your association with a disabled person.
See our pages on disability discrimination for more information.
The DBS is the public agency responsible for:
The DBS replaced the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) and Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA).
There are many situations in which you may feel treated unfairly because of your disability. But the law only covers these types of discrimination:
In the UK, the law that protects you from discrimination is called the Equality Act.
Displacement is where you change your nearest relative. The process of changing the nearest relative is often known as ‘displacement proceedings’.
Your nearest relative can be displaced if you or the local authority have concerns about the way that they're behaving.
See our pages on the nearest relative for more information.
This is a government department that maintains registers of drivers and vehicles in Great Britain.
This is the legal obligation of a person or organisation to act in a certain way. They should act with the attention and caution that a reasonable person would while you're in their care. Or while you're using their services.
This is the solicitor or specialist legal adviser who can give you advice when you're taken to a police station. They're completely independent of the police. You don't have to pay for them to attend the police station. You're allowed to choose your own if you prefer.
These include theft and handling stolen goods. Cases are heard in either the Magistrates' Court or Crown Court.
The Employment Tribunal decides disputes between employers and employees about employment rights. It's like a court but not always so formal.
Enduring powers of attorney have been replaced by lasting powers of attorney in England and Wales. But they can still be used if they were made and signed before October 2007.
This is a document sent to an organisation by the Information Commissioner's Office. It sets out the action the organisation needs to take to comply with its obligations under the Data Protection Act 2018. If the organisation fails to comply with the enforcement notice it's a criminal offence. And the organisation can be fined.
This is a check of your criminal record. It shows details of all spent and unspent convictions, cautions, reprimands and final warnings held on central police records. It doesn’t include protected convictions and cautions. It also shows additional information held on local police records that is reasonably considered relevant to the job in question.
This is a check of your criminal record. It will show the same as an enhanced DBS check. But it will also include a check of the Disclosure and Barring Service’s (DBS) children’s and adults’ barred lists. These are lists of individuals who are barred from working with children or vulnerable adults.
The Equality Act 2010 is the law that protects you from discrimination and gives you the right to challenge it.
See our pages on disability discrimination for more information.
This is where you're allowed to leave the ward accompanied by a member or members of the hospital staff. Your responsible clinician grants you permission to leave the ward under section 17 of the Mental Health Act.
Filtering is the process which identifies and removes protected convictions and cautions so they're no longer disclosed on a DBS certificate. Convictions and cautions aren't 'wiped' from your record. They're simply not disclosed on the DBS certificate.
These no longer exist. They were given to young people under the age of 18 if the police decided not to prosecute them and they had already received a reprimand for a previous offence.
They were also given for first offences that were too serious for a reprimand.
A formal patient is someone who is being detained in hospital under a section of the Mental Health Act. This means they're not free to leave.
These regulations tell organisations how they can use your personal information. They also give you rights to access and correct personal information held about you.
This includes people who drive motor cars and motor cycles.
This includes people who drive large lorries and buses.
This is where someone called a 'guardian' is appointed instead of you being sectioned and kept in hospital. Your guardian could be a person or a local authority.
You can only be placed under guardianship if it's necessary for your welfare or to protect other people. Your guardian has the power to make certain decisions about you. They can also make conditions that you'll be asked to keep to. For example, where you live.
Guardianship lasts for up to 6 months. It can be renewed: initially for a further 6 months, and then for a year at a time. You can appeal to the Mental Health Tribunal once in each of these periods.
This means that a guardian, usually the local authority, will be able to supervise you in the community and make you live at a particular place.
There's no legal definition of healthcare. But the National Framework for NHS Continuing Healthcare says that a healthcare need is related to the treatment, control or prevention of a disease, illness, injury or disability. As well as to the care or aftercare of a person with these needs.
Healthcare decisions are made by people like GPs, nurses and hospital managers. These can include decisions like:
A health record is any record of information relating to your physical or mental health that has been made by, or on behalf of, a health professional.
A hearing is a meeting at the court in front of the judge. It's where decisions are made about your case.
Hospital managers are an independent team of people in a hospital. They make sure that the requirements of the Mental Health Act are properly applied. They have certain important responsibilities. And they can make decisions related to your detention.
In practice, most of the day-to-day decisions are taken by individuals authorised by the hospital managers to do so. This can include hospital staff. Decisions about discharge are normally delegated to a team of people who are independent of the hospital. You can apply to them to be discharged from your section and they will decide whether or not to discharge you.
In the UK, our human rights are protected by law. This law is called the Human Rights Act 1998.
Citizens Advice has more information about human rights.
This means that you're vulnerable because of your mental health problem. And that you need a level of care or control that you're not receiving in a public place to keep you safe and healthy.
Information that is incorrect or misleading as to any matter of fact.
An IMCA is a specially trained advocate. They can help you if you don't have the capacity to make particular decisions. NHS bodies or local authorities must take an IMCA's views into account when making decisions that affect you if you've lost capacity. IMCAs are normally appointed by the local authority in England, and by local health boards or other NHS bodies in Wales. They must be independent people of integrity and good character with appropriate experience and training.
See our page on IMCAs for more information.
An IMHA is an advocate. They're specially trained to help you find out your rights under the Mental Health Act 1983. And to help you while you're detained. They can listen to what you want and speak for you.
You have a right to an IMHA if you are:
In Wales, voluntary patients can also have an IMHA.
See our page on IMHAs in England and Wales for more information.
This is an independent body. It's responsible for reviewing disputes from people about the local police information disclosed on enhanced DBS certificates.
The IPCC oversees the police complaints system in England and Wales. You can contact them by visiting the IPCC website.
These include very serious offences, like rape, manslaughter and murder. Cases are heard in the Crown Court.
This means you've chosen to go into hospital. You haven't been sectioned. It's also called being a 'voluntary patient'.
The ICO is an independent body. It's responsible for making sure that organisations comply with their obligations under the Data Protection Act 2018.
If you committed a crime, but your mental health condition meant that you didn't know what you were doing, you may be able to use the defence of 'insanity'. Or you might be able to use the defence of 'insanity' if you didn't know what you were doing was wrong.
But even if you're successful with this defence, you won't necessarily be acquitted.
ICBs are part of the NHS. They:
Membership of each board varies but usually includes healthcare professionals and local authority representatives. ICBs were introduced in 2022 to replace clinical commissioning groups (CCGs).
Judicial review is a type of court procedure where a judge reviews a public authority’s decision, policy, practice, action or failure to act. And they decide whether it's lawful or not.
If they decide it's not lawful, the court can cancel the decision or action (‘quash’ it). They can also order the public authority to reconsider it.
It might be lawful for a person or organisation to treat you unfavourably if they can show that:
This is called a 'justification' in legal terms.
Whoever is deciding whether unfavourable treatment is justified must balance both sides' needs. This can be very complicated.
A lasting power of attorney is a legal document that lets you appoint someone to make decisions for you. That person is called an attorney.
See our pages on the Mental Capacity Act for more information.
Legal aid is financial support to help meet legal costs. Like paying for legal advice, family mediation and representation in a court or tribunal.
You can find out more about legal aid on the UK government website. You can also contact Civil Legal Advice to find out whether you're eligible.
A letter before claim is a letter notifying someone that court proceedings may be brought against them. It's sometimes called a letter of claim. Or a letter before action.
Courts believe that legal action should be a last resort. They encourage people to resolve their disputes at an early stage. This can be by communicating with each other and trying to find a solution informally.
Liaison and Diversion services should identify vulnerable people who come into contact with the criminal justice system as suspects, defendants or offenders. This includes people with:
Someone from this service should assess you, and:
Limited human rights can be restricted for specific reasons. Human rights can only be restricted if it is proportionate – that is, it must be for a fair and valid reason.
For example, the right to liberty (Article 5) is a limited right. The state can detain a person for many lawful reasons including prison, mental health grounds and other reasons listed in the Article.
A litigation friend is someone who can take your place in legal proceedings, if you lack capacity to take part yourself. For example, the litigation friend could instruct solicitors on your behalf. Or they could speak to the judge directly on your behalf.
A litigation friend could be a family member, a friend, or the Official Solicitor.
LHBs are a key part of the health service in Wales. They exist to create and deliver services based on the needs of the local community.
Local police records are records that are not held on the Police National Computer. They contain information that's not about a conviction.
Magistrates' Court is one of the two types of criminal court. It is the lower of the two courts, below the Crown Court.
If you make a subject access request that is 'manifestly unfounded or excessive', the organisation can refuse or ask you to pay a fee. This could be because your request is for an amount of information that is larger than necessary. Or it could be the same as a recent request you made.
In the Mental Health Act, this means medical treatment to relieve the signs and symptoms of your mental health condition. Or to stop it from getting worse. It includes:
The Mental Capacity Act 2005 is the law that tells you what you can do to plan ahead in case you can't make decisions for yourself. It includes how you can ask someone else to make decisions for you. And who can make decisions for you if you haven't planned ahead.
See our pages on the Mental Capacity Act for more information.
The Mental Capacity Act Code of Practice explains how people should interpret the Mental Capacity Act. It places certain legal duties on health and social care professionals. And it gives general guidance and information to anyone caring for someone who may lack capacity.
When the Mental Health Act talks about someone with mental health problems, it often uses the term 'mental disorder'. The Act says that this can include "any disorder or disability of mind".
Mental disorder can include:
The MHA is a law that applies to England and Wales. It allows people to be detained in hospital (sectioned) if they have a mental health disorder and need treatment. You can only be kept in hospital if certain conditions are met.
See our pages on the Mental Health Act for more information.
The Mental Health Act Administrator works in the hospital. They collect and keep the section or community treatment order (CTO) papers safe. And they make sure that procedures are followed. Like arranging hearings and making sure you are given the right information.
This tells health professionals how they should follow the Mental Health Act. The Code is not law. So a court cannot enforce it. But health professionals should follow it unless there is a good reason not to.
The Code covers some areas not specifically mentioned in the Mental Health Act. Such as visiting rights and the use of seclusion.
If a health professional doesn’t follow the Code, you can make a complaint.
This is a special court that deals with cases relating to the Mental Health Act 1983. The Tribunal decides whether you can be discharged from your section. It can sometimes make recommendations about other matters. Such as hospital leave, transfer to another hospital, guardianship and community treatment orders (CTOs).
The court consists of a panel, which normally includes:
Where you see a reference to the Mental Health Tribunal in this guide, it means:
This is a law that applies to Wales. It sets out the support that people living in Wales should receive from primary and secondary mental health services.
The nearest relative is a family member. They have certain responsibilities and powers if you are detained in hospital under the Mental Health Act. These include the right to information and to discharge in some situations.
The law sets out a list to decide who will be your nearest relative. This can sometimes be changed.
See our pages on the nearest relative for more information.
This is the first stage in getting any social care. The local authority will do an assessment to gain a full picture of what kinds of care and support needs you have. They will use this to make informed decisions about whether you're eligible for support.
In law, negligence is an act or failure to act (omission) that doesn't meet the level of appropriate care expected. And results in injury or loss.
If a doctor or health professional is negligent when giving you medical treatment, this is called 'clinical negligence'.
NHS Resolution is the part of the NHS which has been set up to deal with negligence claims. They defend claims brought against the NHS. And they share learning from claims to improve patient and staff safety in the future.
A not kept under proper control warrant is issued under the Mental Health Act. It means you're vulnerable because of your mental health problem. And that you need a level of care or control to keep you safe and healthy that you're not receiving at that time.
The job of an occupational health professional is to assess you to find out:
Your employer can refer you to occupational health if you have a physical or mental health problem that's affecting your work or causing you to take time off sick. Particularly if this is more than two or three weeks at once.
If you disagree with their assessment, it's important to seek advice.
This is the independent organisation that reviews individual complaints against universities by students. Universities have complaints procedures. You must use this to try to resolve your discrimination complaint before you contact the OIA.
The OPG helps people in England and Wales to stay in control of decisions about their health and finance. And to make important decisions for others who cannot decide for themselves.
For example, they can:
A court may ask the Official Solicitor to take part in the proceedings if you lack capacity to conduct them for yourself. And if decisions are being made for you in court. Their job is to make sure your interests are protected during the proceedings.
An ombudsman is an official appointed to investigate a complaint against a company, an organisation, or a public authority. The ombudsman is independent of:
This is guidance about how the police should use their powers and follow the rules in Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 (PACE 1984).
The rights and responsibilities that a parent has for a child. This might include making decisions about their upbringing and where they live. It's possible for people who are not parents of a child to get parental responsibility. For example, a court can give a grandparent or family member parental responsibility.
The Mental Health Act says that a patient is someone suffering from mental disorder. Or someone who appears to be suffering from mental disorder.
Information which relates to you in such a way that you can be identified from it. Personal information might be held:
See our pages on my personal information to find out more about your rights.
This is a locally agreed place where the police may take you to be assessed. It's usually a hospital but can be your home. A police station should only be used in an emergency.
If you're charged with a crime and have to go to court, you will be asked whether or not you did the crime. This is known as 'entering a plea'.
This is the law that sets out the rules that police must follow when you are arrested about how they treat you.
'Premises' means buildings and land that goes with them (property), in which people live.
This is often the first point of contact for people in need of healthcare. It's provided by professionals such as GPs, dentists and pharmacists.
The Equality Act uses the term 'prohibited conduct' for behaviour that counts as unlawful. It covers discrimination, harassment, failure to make reasonable adjustments and victimisation.
Some human rights can be restricted. If they are restricted, it must be done in a ‘proportionate’ way. This means that it is appropriate and not excessive in the circumstances.
There are 9 characteristics the Equality Act protects from discrimination.
They are:
See our pages on disability discrimination for more information.
These are organisations whose role is of a public nature. This includes:
This means an act or activity taken by a public authority which is not a service. A public authority carries out a public function when it performs its particular legal duties and powers. Examples of public functions are licensing, planning and enforcement of parking.
Public authorities can get private companies or voluntary organisations to carry out their public functions. For example, a private company that runs prisons and takes prisoners into custody. This is a private company carrying out a public function.
This is the legal duty which public authorities have to follow. These include councils, NHS hospitals and government departments. It means they have to consider how their policies and practices affect people with protected characteristics. Like people with mental health problems.
Private or voluntary organisations carrying out public functions on behalf of public authorities also have to follow the public sector equality duty. For example, a private firm employed by a local council to collect council tax arrears.
A qualified right can only be restricted when certain general conditions are met. This means your individual rights need to be balanced with the interests of the wider community.
An example of this would be the government restricting your right to freedom of expression (Article 10 of the Human Rights Act 1998) if you're encouraging racial hatred.
These are changes that should be made for you if you're at a major disadvantage because of your mental health problem. And it's reasonable for the changes to be made. Reasonable adjustments should be made by:
Examples of reasonable adjustments include:
This means that you can be returned to hospital. It applies to you if you're on section 17 leave, on a community treatment order (CTO) or have been conditionally discharged from hospital.
If you're on a CTO, you can be recalled for up to 72 hours if the responsible clinician thinks that:
You must meet both criteria.
This means removing the relevant information. It can be done by crossing through the relevant information with a black marker pen and then photocopying the document. Or by using a computerised programme specially designed for this purpose.
Under the Welsh complaints system Putting Things Right, an NHS body will investigate your claim and consider if you have the right to redress.
Redress can be:
A qualified doctor, for example a GP or psychiatrist.
Health and social care regulators oversee the health and social care professions. They regulate individual professionals.
These organisations are set up to protect the public. So whenever you see a health or social care professional, you can be confident that they're of a professional standard.
After arrest, instead of releasing you on bail with conditions, the police can decide to release you under investigation. This is often referred to as 'RUI'. This is not the same as being released on bail, as you do not have any conditions. And you don't have to return to the police station on a particular date.
Being released under investigation doesn't mean that the police have decided to take no further action against you. It simply means that they're continuing their investigation.
This is someone who can support you in all matters connected to a Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards situation. For example requesting a review of the deprivation of liberty and making an application to the Court of Protection. It can be someone like a family member (and often is). You can choose who you want it to be if you have the capacity to do so.
An RPR must be:
This means that you will go to prison until you go to court to have your case considered. Sometimes you can be remanded to hospital instead of prison.
This is the equivalent of a caution for young people aged under 18. These no longer exist. See also, final warning.
This is the mental health professional in charge of your care and treatment while you're sectioned under the Mental Health Act.
Certain decisions can only be taken by the responsible clinician. For example, applying for someone who is sectioned to go onto a community treatment order (CTO).
All responsible clinicians must be approved clinicians. They don't have to be doctors, but many of them are.
This is an organisation registered with the DBS to submit basic checks through a web service. The organisation is responsible for confirming your identity. They also check the information supplied in the application for a basic check is accurate. And that you’ve given your consent to submit the application. You can apply to a responsible organisation. Or a prospective employer can apply to them.
The UK government website has a list of responsible organisations.
In hospital, your care team are allowed to use physical force to stop you for either 1 or both of these reasons:
This is called ‘restraint’ or ‘being restrained’.
Your care team should only use restraint if nothing else has helped to calm you down. Either way, they should always try to talk to you first. But if they have no other option than restraint, they must:
Your care team should never use restraint as punishment, or with the aim of hurting you.
Under some sections, the police might also have to use restraint to bring you to hospital.
If a court believes a patient poses a risk to the public it can add this type of court order to a hospital order under section 41. It means that only the Secretary of State for Justice can approve the patient’s discharge, transfer or leave from hospital. So it’s harder to get a discharge from the tribunal. The person will be subject to certain conditions for as long as the restriction order remains, even after discharge.
This is a legal definition. It means that your community treatment order (CTO) has ended. And that you're detained under the original section, for example section 3.
In social care, safeguarding means protecting your right to live in safety, free from abuse and neglect.
Local authorities have duties under the law towards people who are:
All local authorities must have a safeguarding adults board to:
A safeguarding adults board is made up of:
Other people can also be invited to attend some meetings. Like GPs and members of user, advocacy or carers groups. Two or more integrated care boards can cooperate to establish a safeguarding adults board together.
This is an independent doctor. In England they're appointed by the Care Quality Commission. In Wales, the Healthcare Inspectorate Wales appoints them. They must give their approval for you to be given, or continue to be given, certain forms of medical treatment under the Mental Health Act 1983.
See our pages on consent to treatment for more information.
These are healthcare services which generally will need a referral from a GP.
Examples of secondary mental health services include:
Being 'sectioned' means that you're kept in hospital under the Mental Health Act. There are different types of sections. Each have different rules to keep you in hospital. The length of time that you can be kept in hospital depends on which section you're detained under.
See our pages on sectioning for more information.
This is where your responsible clinician gives you permission to leave the ward or the hospital for short periods. They may ask you to keep to certain conditions, such as returning within a certain time.
Some people who have been kept in hospital under the Mental Health Act can get free help and support after they leave hospital. The law that gives this right is section 117 of the Mental Health Act. It's often referred to as 'section 117 aftercare'.
Health authorities and local social services have a legal duty to give you section 117 aftercare if:
This is a doctor trained and qualified in the use of the Mental Health Act. It's usually a psychiatrist. It's possible for a section 12 approved doctor and a responsible clinician to be the same person if they meet the requirements for each role.
Under this section of the Mental Health Act, a police officer can take you to a place of safety if you're in a public area and these both apply:
Our page on Sections 135 and 136 has more information.
If you've been to court and have been found guilty, the judge will give you a sentence. There's a range of sentences this could be. They include a community sentence (like doing unpaid work), going to prison or going to hospital.
This is an organisation or person that provides services to the public or a section of the public. You might pay for the services or they might be free. Service providers include private companies, voluntary organisations and public authorities.
This includes services provided by:
There's no legal definition of social care. But the National Framework for NHS Continuing Healthcare says that a social care need is focused on giving help with:
Social care decisions are made by people like social workers, nurses or support workers. These can include decisions like:
This is the law that governs social care in Wales. It sets out the local authorities’ duties in relation to assessing people’s needs and their eligibility for care and support. This includes children's and adults' social care and carers who need support.
This is a conviction or caution that, after a period of time, can be treated as if it never existed. It no longer needs to be disclosed in a basic DBS check.
Simple cautions become spent immediately at the moment they're issued. Conditional cautions become spent after 3 months.
Spent convictions and cautions may still be disclosed in standard or enhanced DBS checks.
This is a check of your criminal record. It will show details of all spent and unspent convictions, cautions, reprimands and final warnings held on central police records. It won't show protected convictions and cautions.
This is a written request to an organisation asking for details of the personal information they hold about you.
See our pages on accessing my personal information to find out more.
These include motor offences and minor assaults. Cases are heard in the Magistrates' Court.
You can be under supervised community treatment if you're put under a community treatment order (CTO).
For more information about what a CTO is, how it affects you and how you can change or end it, see our pages on CTOs.
If a court gives you an indeterminate sentence (one without a fixed time limit), or a life sentence, it will set a 'tariff' or 'minimum term'. This is the earliest date at which you could be released. The exception is where the court gives a 'whole life sentence' which doesn't have a tariff.
Tertiary care is highly specialised healthcare treatment. Such as secure forensic mental health services in a prison.
If the court decides that you're unfit to plead, it will have a trial of the facts instead of a full trial. The court's sentencing powers are different if you only have a trial of the facts.
This is a tribunal which handles appeals received from lower tribunals. It's not a specialist mental health tribunal.
You can appeal to it if the Mental Health Tribunal got a point of law wrong. In practice, it's rarely used in mental health.
A court may decide you're unfit to plead if it seems that you're not able to understand the court process. Or if you're not able to instruct a lawyer to represent you.
When a person is convicted of a crime, that conviction is considered to be irrelevant after a set amount of time. This is known as the rehabilitation period. There are some exceptions in very limited circumstances.
After the rehabilitation period for a conviction has lapsed, the conviction is referred to as 'spent'. This period of time varies according to the sentence received.
A conviction is described as 'unspent' if the rehabilitation period associated with it has not yet lapsed.
Simple cautions become spent immediately at the moment they're issued, while conditional cautions become spent after 3 months.
Voluntary patients are people who are staying in a psychiatric hospital but are not detained under the Mental Health Act. They're also known as 'informal patients'.
If you're a voluntary patient, you should be able to come and go from the hospital within reason. And you should be able to discharge yourself if you decide to go home.
See our pages on informal patients for more information.
You're considered a 'vulnerable adult' if all of these apply:
Quite often, especially in the Crown Court, you won't be given a fixed date for trial. Instead, your case will be put into what is known as a ‘warned list’. This means that you'll be given a range of dates. And your trial could start on any day during this period.
