Mental Health Act 2025

1. Introductory Text

2. Code of practice

   1. 1. Principles to inform decisions

   2. 2. Application of principles to Wales

3. Autism and learning disability

   1. 3. Application of the Mental Health Act 1983: autism and learning disability

   2. 4. People with autism or learning disability

4. Grounds for detention and community treatment orders

   1. 5. Grounds for detention

   2. 6. Grounds for community treatment orders

   3. 7. Grounds for discharge by tribunal

5. Appropriate medical treatment

   1. 8. Appropriate medical treatment: therapeutic benefit

   2. 9. Remission or release of prisoners etc from hospital: treatment condition

6. The responsible clinician

   1. 10. Nomination of the responsible clinician

7. Treatment

   1. 11. Making treatment decisions

   2. 12. Appointment of doctors to provide second opinions

   3. 13. Medicine etc: treatment conflicting with a decision by or on behalf of a patient

   4. 14. Medicine etc: treatment in other circumstances

   5. 15. Electro-convulsive therapy etc

   6. 16. Review of treatment

   7. 17. Urgent treatment to alleviate serious suffering

   8. 18. Urgent electro-convulsive therapy etc

   9. 19. Remote assessment for treatment

   10. 20. Capacity to consent to treatment

   11. 21. Care and treatment plans

8. Community treatment orders

   1. 22. Consultation of the community clinician

   2. 23. Conditions of community treatment orders

9. Nominated persons

   1. 24. Nominated person

   2. 25. Applications for admission or guardianship: role of nominated person

   3. 26. Discharge of patients: role of nominated person

   4. 27. Community treatment orders: role of nominated person

   5. 28. Transfer of patients: role of nominated person

10. Detention periods

    1. 29. Detention periods

11. Periods for applications and references to tribunal

    1. 30. Periods for tribunal applications

    2. 31. References to tribunal

    3. 32. References: restricted patients subject to deprivation of liberty conditions

    4. 33. References: restricted patients not subject to deprivation of liberty conditions

12. Discharge: process

    1. 34. Discharge: process

13. Patients concerned in criminal proceedings or under sentence

    1. 35. Conditional discharge subject to deprivation of liberty conditions

    2. 36. Transfers of prisoners and others to hospital: conditions

    3. 37. Transfers of prisoners and others to hospital: time limits

    4. 38. Transfer directions for persons detained in youth detention accommodation

    5. 39. Minor amendment

14. Help and information for patients

    1. 40. Independent mental health advocates

    2. 41. Information about complaints for detained patients

    3. 42. Information about complaints for community patients

    4. 43. Information for conditionally discharged patients

    5. 44. Advance choice documents

15. After-care

    1. 45. Tribunal power to recommend after-care

    2. 46. After-care services

16. Miscellaneous

    1. 47. Tribunal powers in guardianship cases: burden of proof

    2. 48. Removal of police stations and prisons as places of safety

    3. 49. Remand for a person’s own protection etc

    4. 50. Removal of interim remand patients to and from Channel Islands or Isle of Man

    5. 51. Human Rights Act 1998: extension to certain private care providers

    6. 52. Review of duty to notify incidents

17. General

    1. 53. Power of Secretary of State to make consequential provision

    2. 54. Power of Welsh Ministers to make consequential provision

    3. 55. Extent

    4. 56. Commencement

    5. 57. Short title

18. Schedules

    1. Schedule 1

       Application of the 1983 Act to autism and learning disability: amendments and transitory provision

       1. 1. Amendments of Part 2 of the Mental Health Act 1983

       2. 2. In section 3 (admission for treatment), in subsection (2), for...

       3. 3. In section 7 (application for guardianship), in subsection (2), for...

       4. 4. (1) Section 17A (community treatment orders) is amended as follows....

       5. 5. In section 17E (power to recall community patient to hospital),...

       6. 6. (1) Section 20 (renewal of authority in relation to admission...

       7. 7. Amendments of Part 3 of the Mental Health Act 1983

       8. 8. Before the italic heading before section 35 insert— Application of...

       9. 9. In the following places, for “mental” substitute “relevant”— section 35(3)(a)...

       10. 10. In section 55 (interpretation)— (a) in subsection (1), at the...

       11. 11. (1) In Schedule 1 (application of certain provisions to patients...

       12. 12. Amendments of Part 4 of the Mental Health Act 1983

       13. 13. In section 56 (patients to whom Part 4 applies)—

       14. 14. In the following places, for “mental”, substitute “relevant”— section 58(1)(b)...

       15. 15. Amendments of Part 4A of the Mental Health Act 1983

       16. 16. Amendments of Part 5 of the Mental Health Act 1983

       17. 17. (1) Section 72 (grounds for discharge by tribunal) is amended...

       18. 18. In section 73 (power to discharge restricted patients), after subsection...

       19. 19. In section 74 (restricted patients subject to restriction directions), in...

       20. 20. Transitory modifications of the Mental Health Act 1983

       21. 21. (1) Pending the coming into force of section 7(2) of...

       22. 22. Pending the coming into force of section 7(3) of this...

       23. 23. Pending the coming into force of section 8(8) of this...

       24. 24. Pending the coming into force of section 13(3)(b) of this...

       25. 25. Pending the coming into force of section 29(5)(d) and (e)...

    2. Schedule 2

       Nominated persons

       1. Part 1 Appointment etc

          1. 1. The Mental Health Act 1983 is amended as follows.

          2. 2. Before section 31 and the italic heading before that section...

          3. 3. Before Schedule 1 insert— Schedule A1 Nominated person Section 30A...

       2. Part 2 Functions of nominated person

          1. 4. The Mental Health Act 1983 is amended as follows.

          2. 5. In section 4 (admission for assessment in cases of emergency),...

          3. 6. (1) Section 11 (general provisions as to applications) is amended...

          4. 7. In section 13 (duty of approved mental health professionals to...

          5. 8. In section 14 (social reports), for “nearest relative” substitute “nominated...

          6. 9. In section 23 (discharge of patients), in subsection (2)(a), (b)...

          7. 10. In section 24 (visiting and examination of patient), in subsection...

          8. 11. Omit sections 26 to 30 and the italic heading before...

          9. 12. In section 32 (regulations for purposes of Part), in subsection...

          10. 13. In section 33 (special provisions as to wards of court),...

          11. 14. In section 66 (applications to tribunals), in subsection (1), in...

          12. 15. In section 69 (applications to tribunals concerning patients subject to...

          13. 16. In section 116 (welfare of certain hospital patients), in subsection...

          14. 17. In section 118 (code of practice), in subsection (1)—

          15. 18. In section 130B (arrangements in relation to independent mental advocates:...

          16. 19. In section 130D (duty to give information about independent mental...

          17. 20. In section 130H (independent mental health advocates for Wales: supplementary...

          18. 21. In section 130K (duty to give information about independent mental...

          19. 22. In section 132 (duty of managers of hospitals to give...

          20. 23. In section 132A (duty of managers of hospitals to give...

          21. 24. (1) Section 133 (duty of managers of hospitals to give...

          22. 25. (1) Section 145(1) (interpretation) is amended as follows.

       3. Part 3 Patients concerned in criminal proceedings etc: functions of nominated person

          1. 26. The Mental Health Act 1983 is amended as follows.

          2. 27. After section 36 (but before the italic heading after that...

          3. 28. In section 38 (interim hospital orders), after subsection (7) insert—...

          4. 29. In Part 1 of Schedule 1 (application of certain provisions...

          5. 30. In Part 2 of Schedule 1 (application of certain provisions...

    3. Schedule 3

       Independent mental health advocates

       1. 1. The Mental Health Act 1983 is amended as follows.

       2. 2. (1) Section 118 (code of practice) is amended as follows....

       3. 3. (1) Section 130A (independent mental health advocates) is amended as...

       4. 4. (1) Section 130B (arrangements under section 130A) is amended as...

       5. 5. (1) Section 130C (section 130A: supplemental) is amended as follows....

       6. 6. After section 130C insert— “English qualifying informal patients” For the purposes of this Part a patient is an...

       7. 7. For section 130D substitute— Duty to give information to English...

       8. 8. In section 130J (Welsh qualifying informal patients), in subsection (2),...