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Part 12Sentencing

Chapter 4Further provisions about orders under Chapters 2 and 3

Requirements available in case of all offenders

207Mental health treatment requirement

(1)In this Part, “mental health treatment requirement”, in relation to a community order or suspended sentence order, means a requirement that the offender must submit, during a period or periods specified in the order, to treatment by or under the direction of a registered medical practitioner or a chartered psychologist (or both, for different periods) with a view to the improvement of the offender’s mental condition.

(2)The treatment required must be such one of the following kinds of treatment as may be specified in the relevant order—

(a)treatment as a resident patient in an independent hospital or care home within the meaning of the Care Standards Act 2000 (c. 14) or a hospital within the meaning of the Mental Health Act 1983 (c. 20), but not in hospital premises where high security psychiatric services within the meaning of that Act are provided;

(b)treatment as a non-resident patient at such institution or place as may be specified in the order;

(c)treatment by or under the direction of such registered medical practitioner or chartered psychologist (or both) as may be so specified;

but the nature of the treatment is not to be specified in the order except as mentioned in paragraph (a), (b) or (c).

(3)A court may not by virtue of this section include a mental health treatment requirement in a relevant order unless—

(a)the court is satisfied, on the evidence of a registered medical practitioner approved for the purposes of section 12 of the Mental Health Act 1983, that the mental condition of the offender—

(i)is such as requires and may be susceptible to treatment, but

(ii)is not such as to warrant the making of a hospital order or guardianship order within the meaning of that Act;

(b)the court is also satisfied that arrangements have been or can be made for the treatment intended to be specified in the order (including arrangements for the reception of the offender where he is to be required to submit to treatment as a resident patient); and

(c)the offender has expressed his willingness to comply with such a requirement.

(4)While the offender is under treatment as a resident patient in pursuance of a mental health requirement of a relevant order, his responsible officer shall carry out the supervision of the offender to such extent only as may be necessary for the purpose of the revocation or amendment of the order.

(5)Subsections (2) and (3) of section 54 of the Mental Health Act 1983 (c. 20) have effect with respect to proof for the purposes of subsection (3)(a) of an offender’s mental condition as they have effect with respect to proof of an offender’s mental condition for the purposes of section 37(2)(a) of that Act.

(6)In this section and section 208, “chartered psychologist” means a person for the time being listed in the British Psychological Society’s Register of Chartered Psychologists.