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35,970 claims
Children and young people are often detained in police cells under S136, which can lead to criminalization and delay in receiving necessary care.
Arresting them for a criminal offence could criminalise a person unnecessarily leading to a criminal record and potentially prosecution. It could also lead to them failing to promptly receive the care and treatment they need.
Policy · Observational claim · From Review of the operation of Sections 135 and 136 of the Mental Health Act — Full review report and recommendations, page 44
The review identified that police cells are used in between a third and a quarter of S136 detentions, contrary to the requirement for exceptional use.
police custody is not used exceptionally as a ‘last resort’, but has instead been used in between a third and a quarter of cases
Metric · Observational claim · From Review of the operation of Sections 135 and 136 of the Mental Health Act — Full review report and recommendations, page 42
The review aims to significantly reduce the use of police custody as a place of safety for people detained under S135 or S136.
significantly reduce the use of police custody as a place of safety
Policy · Policy statement · From Review of the operation of Sections 135 and 136 of the Mental Health Act — Full review report and recommendations, page 40
There is a need for better multi-agency working to address the issues faced by individuals repeatedly detained under S136.
Many of the responses to the online survey and in the practitioner workshops said that the police are not medical professionals and that mental health crisis care is a health issue. A number of police officers in the workshops said that they were increasingly being relied upon to support mental health services that seemed under increasing strain.
Commissioning · Policy statement · From Review of the operation of Sections 135 and 136 of the Mental Health Act — Full review report and recommendations, page 38
Black African Caribbean men are disproportionately overrepresented in S136 detentions compared to the general population.
Several studies into S136 suggested that BME groups – in particular Black African Caribbean men – were disproportionately over-represented in S136 detentions compared to the general population
Context · Observational claim · From Review of the operation of Sections 135 and 136 of the Mental Health Act — Full review report and recommendations, page 37
Police officers sometimes bring individuals to emergency departments as voluntary patients instead of using S136/135, leaving hospitals without legal authority to manage them.
Police are regularly detaining people for reason relating to Mental Health, but don’t for whatever reason put them under a S136/135. I have lost count on the amount occasions Police Officer bring in a patient to our Emergency Department that are restrained in handcuffs and leg restraints and are carried in by 4 police officers.
Operational · Observational claim · From Review of the operation of Sections 135 and 136 of the Mental Health Act — Full review report and recommendations, page 35
The police and health services should record transfers between places of safety to ensure continuity of care.
It would be desirable for such transfers to be recorded by police and health services so that people are tracked and continuity of care is ensured.
Operational · Procedural statement · From Review of the operation of Sections 135 and 136 of the Mental Health Act — Full review report and recommendations, page 32
There is confusion among professionals about the application of S136 in certain locations, such as railway lines and private vehicles.
It was clear from the evidence submitted to the review that there is some confusion over where S136 can and cannot apply under current law (the definition of a ‘place to which the public have access’),
Policy · Observational claim · From Review of the operation of Sections 135 and 136 of the Mental Health Act — Full review report and recommendations, page 32
The number of S135 detentions is an undercount as it does not include all relevant scenarios.
l numbers of detentions are made under S135 – with just 307 recorded in 2013/14 – but these data on S135 detentions are thought to be an undercount because they only include those persons brought to hospital under S135.
Metric · Observational claim · From Review of the operation of Sections 135 and 136 of the Mental Health Act — Full review report and recommendations, page 31
Children and young people are less likely to access health-based places of safety compared to adults, often leading to police custody.
'Despite the comparatively small numbers of children and young people detained, statistical analysis of this data shows that adults were significantly less likely to be taken to a police station than people under the age of 18'. They raised 'significant concerns about the restrictions in place preventing children and young people from accessing health-based places of safety'
Service · Observational claim · From Review of the operation of Sections 135 and 136 of the Mental Health Act — Full review report and recommendations, page 24
Staffing issues often prevent health-based places of safety from operating effectively, leading to delays and sometimes police custody for patients.
staffing was drawn from acute inpatient / PICU61 staff...it was least problematic where two posts on the supplying inpatient wards were supernumerary or where there was a cluster of inpatient wards, and the burden of staffing was shared across more than one ward
Operational · Observational claim · From Review of the operation of Sections 135 and 136 of the Mental Health Act — Full review report and recommendations, page 24
The Royal College of Psychiatrists recommends assessments under S136 should occur within three hours.
royal College of Psychiatrists recommends that the AMHP and the doctor56 should attend within three hours of the person detained under S136 arriving at the place of safety unless there are good clinical grounds to delay assessment57
Policy · Policy statement · From Review of the operation of Sections 135 and 136 of the Mental Health Act — Full review report and recommendations, page 23
Health-based places of safety should be available 24 hours a day with appropriate staffing.
96% of respondents to the survey said that health-based places of safety should have 24-hour access and staff available: 92% said that there should always be an age-appropriate place of safety available for under 18s
Service · Policy statement · From Review of the operation of Sections 135 and 136 of the Mental Health Act — Full review report and recommendations, page 21
The use of police cells as places of safety for individuals detained under Section 136 is decreasing in many areas.
Both the Centre for Mental Health and the review project team visits found that the use of police cells as a place of safety is decreasing in many areas, in line with the mental health Crisis Care Concordat’s commitment42. The number of S136 detentions in police custody in 2013/14 in England was 6,028, a reduction of 24% from the previous year.
Service · Trend statement · From Review of the operation of Sections 135 and 136 of the Mental Health Act — Full review report and recommendations, page 20
Police cells are often not considered a safe environment for individuals experiencing mental health crises.
Some said that they were not a ‘place of safety’ because the person did not feel ‘safe’. Several people in the open text responses to the survey, in workshops, and focus groups with services users said that having police officers involved can sometimes escalate a situation because their uniform and authority can cause the person to become more agitated.
Service · Observational claim · From Review of the operation of Sections 135 and 136 of the Mental Health Act — Full review report and recommendations, page 20
The review found that police cells are used in approximately one quarter of cases as places of safety under S135 and S136, despite the Code of Practice stating this should be exceptional.
Despite this, police cells have continued to be used in approximately one quarter of cases (based on 2013/14 figures).
Service · Observational claim · From Review of the operation of Sections 135 and 136 of the Mental Health Act — Full review report and recommendations, page 19
The review engaged with various stakeholders including service users, families, carers, and professionals from health, policing, and ambulance services.
At every stage the review has engaged external stakeholders including academic experts, professionals in health, ambulance services and policing, people who have experienced being detained under these parts of the legislation, and their families and carers.
Relational · Procedural statement · From Review of the operation of Sections 135 and 136 of the Mental Health Act — Full review report and recommendations, page 17
The review aimed to determine if changes to legislation would improve outcomes for people experiencing a mental health crisis.
The review aimed to examine the evidence and determine whether or not changes to the primary legislation would improve outcomes for people experiencing a mental health crisis.
Policy · Procedural statement · From Review of the operation of Sections 135 and 136 of the Mental Health Act — Full review report and recommendations, page 16
The review recommends requiring police to consult a health professional before detaining someone under S136 if feasible.
Requiring the police to consult a suitable health professional prior to detaining a person under S136 provided it is feasible and possible to do so
Policy · Procedural statement · From Review of the operation of Sections 135 and 136 of the Mental Health Act — Full review report and recommendations, page 12
The review suggests reducing the maximum length of detention under S135 and S136 to 24 hours from 72 hours.
Reducing the maximum length of detention under S135 and S136 to 24 hours from 72 hours, in any place of safety.
Policy · Policy statement · From Review of the operation of Sections 135 and 136 of the Mental Health Act — Full review report and recommendations, page 12