The Mental Health (Approval of Persons to be Approved Mental Health Professionals) (Wales) Regulations 2008

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations are made under section 114 of the Mental Health Act 1983 (c. 20) as substituted by section 18 of the Mental Health Act 2007 (c. 12). They set out a number of matters with which a local social services authority (“LSSA”) must comply when approving a person to be an approved mental health professional (“AMHP”).

Regulation 3 sets out certain prerequisites before a person can be approved in Wales as an AMHP by an LSSA. These are that the person belongs to one of the professions set out in Schedule 1, and has appropriate competence taking into account the skills listed in Schedule 2 and his or her references. Before a person may be approved as an AMHP for the first time, that person must have completed an approved course within the last two years. Additionally where that person has only acted as an AMHP within England, the LSSA must satisfy itself that the person is able to demonstrate that he or she has appropriate competence such as will enable him or her to act as an AMHP within Wales, or failing which, to undertake whatever training the LSSA considers necessary to ensure that the AMHP becomes competent to do so.

Regulation 4 specifies a maximum period of approval or reapproval as five years.

Regulation 5 sets out the circumstances in which approval ends and imposes requirements as to the notification of such a fact to other LSSAs.

Regulation 6 provides for suspension of approval in the event of a person being suspended from the applicable register or listing of the listed professions or the attachment of conditions to approval in the event of conditions being attached to his or her registration or listing.

Regulation 7 lists conditions to which approval or reapproval generally will be subject.

Regulation 8 sets out prerequisites before a person can be reapproved as an AMHP.

Regulation 9 requires LSSAs to keep records with specified details of AMHPs for whom it is the approving LSSA.

Schedule 1 lists the professions in respect of which a person may be approved as an AMHP.

Schedule 2 sets out factors to be taken into account when assessing competence of a person to be approved as an AMHP.

A full regulatory impact assessment has not been produced for this instrument as no significant impact on the private or voluntary sector is foreseen.