All UK citizens have their rights and freedoms protected by the Human Rights Act 1998. The Mental Capacity Act 2005 exists to protect the rights and freedoms of people who are not able to make their own decisions through illness or disability.

This information explains why your family member or friend has been referred for an assessment under DoLS (Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards).

The Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards 2009 exist to protect the rights and freedoms of people who are covered by the Mental Capacity Act and who are being cared for in a hospital, care home or nursing home. We call these safeguards DoLS for simplicity. Since March 2014, the law has clarified who needs to be assessed for DoLS.

This includes the following people:
  • Anyone being cared for in a care home, nursing home or hospital who is unable to give their consent or agreement to being looked after there;
  • who are not free to leave the ward / hospital independently whilst the DoLS is in place,
  • who are monitored regularly so that their whereabouts are known. The person does not have to be in staff members line of vision at all times.

It has been agreed that you need to stay in hospital to be given the care and treatment where you will be subject to a Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards. 

The Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards say you have the right to:
  • Be told all about the Authorisation, how long it is in place and how it will affect you.
  • Have someone to act as your representative, relevant person’s representative (RPR). They will explain your rights to you and help you to appeal or make a complaint if you are not happy with the Authorisation.  This could be a relative or friend or an independent advocate if required.
  • Ask the council that granted the Standard Authorisation to look at it again – this is called a Review. This could be because you think they got some things wrong, or because something has changed since the assessments were done.
  • Ask the council about any conditions on the Standard Authorisation – these have to be followed be the care home or hospital, if you do not think they being followed you should tell the council, your representative or you can ask the Court of Protection to help you.
  • Ask the Court of Protection for help if you still disagree with the decision – you will not usually have to pay for this as you have the right to legal aid for the costs of a solicitor to help you.
  • Ask the Court of Protection to look at parts of the Standard Authorisation such as whether you have mental capacity to decide for yourself where you receive care or treatment.
  • Have a special kind of advocate called an Independent Mental Capacity Advocate if you or your representative need help to appeal or complain.
The role of the Relevant Persons Representative is to:
  • Maintain contact with the person subject to the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards.
  • Represent and support the person in all matters relating to the Deprivation of Liberty safeguards including compliance with conditions.
  • Advise the person about their right of appeal via the Court of Protection and support them to challenge the arrangements.

This is a crucial role to provide the person with independent support. If the person does not have a friend or family member who is willing or able to fulfil this role the Supervisory Body will appoint a paid representative at no cost to the person, their family or the Managing Authority.

The person deprived of their liberty and their friend or family (Relevant Persons Representative) have a statutory right to the support of an Independent Mental Capacity Advocate (IMCA) appointed by the Supervisory Body free of charge.

If you need any advice about the Standard Authorisation and how to challenge it you can speak to the Trusts MCA Specialist Practitioner on 01228 608887 or you can speak to a solicitor of your choice. 

You can also contact your local DoLS Team at the council. They will always try to listen to your point of view and sort out any disagreement informally if they can. You can contact the DoLS co-ordinators on Cumberland - 01228 226171. 

More information 

More information can be found at Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DOLS) - Information for Care Homes and Hospitals | Cumberland Council

Westmorland and Furness - 01228 226170.

More information can be found at Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) | Westmorland and Furness Council

There are specialist solicitors who can help also you with advice about the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards.

You can get information about local solicitors at local branches of Citizens Advice Bureaux.

Or you can use Find a Solicitor provided by the Law Society

www.solicitors.lawsociety.org.uk or here www.mhla.co.uk/find-a-lawyer/geographical-list/

If you need further help using Find a Solicitor, call the Law Society on 020 7320 5650 - Monday to Friday from 9 a.m. to 5.30 p.m.

You can also contact the Court of Protection at:

Court of Protection
PO Box 70185
First Avenue House
42-49 High Holborn
London
WC1A 9JA

Email courtofprotectionenquiries@hmcts.gsi.gov.uk Telephone enquiries 0300 456 4600

Confidentiality

‘The Trust’s vision is to keep your information safe in our hands.’ We promise to use your information fairly and legally, and in-line with local and national policies. You have a right to understand how your information is used and you can request a copy of the information we hold about you at any time.

For further information on confidentiality contact the Information Governance Team:

Information.Governance@ncic.nhs.uk | 01228 603961

Feedback

We appreciate and encourage feedback, which helps us to improve our services. If you have any comments, compliments or concerns to make about your care, please contact the Patient, Advice & Liaison Service:

pals@ncic.nhs.uk | 01228 814008 or 01946 523818

If you would like to raise a complaint regarding your care, please contact the Complaints Department:

complaints@ncic.nhs.uk | 01228 936302