Place of safety
Section 136 states that once an arrest has been made police must assist the individual to a place of safety (Mental Health Act 1983, s. 136 (1)). To ensure the safety of the individual and the public, until an assessment can be conducted and future treatment has been decided upon (House of Commons 2015). A place of safety, is defined by law, as residential accommodation provided by a local authority (Lynch et al 2002; Borschmann et al 2010), such as: A&E departments, police stations and psychiatric units (Lynch et al 2002). However, it is debated whether a police station should be considered as a place of safety (House of Commons 2015). As, when an individual is detained in custody, the police are expected to become untrained psychiatrists (Costen and Milen 1999). Nonetheless, the Code of Practice Mental Health Act 1983 (2008) states that police stations should only be used as a place of safety in exceptional circumstances. Yet, research and inspection work have consistently found that police cells …show more content…
Yet, the use of police custody as a place of safety will lead to the inevitable expectation of police to care for the mentally ill (Costen and Milen 1999). Despite claims that the detention process for a section 136 detainees is the same procedure for a suspected criminal, in that the individual is stripped of all their property, and on occasions not given the opportunity to make a phone call (HMIC 2013). Furthermore, police cells are noisy, small and unpleasant (Home Office 2014), which can not only lead the detainee to feel treated like a criminal, but can exacerbate their condition (Dockling 2009; Hewitt 2009; HMIC 2013). This environment has led section 136 detainees to report feeling frightened and distressed (Riley et al 2011; Home Office 2014). These concerns, may explain why 50% of deaths in custody are section 136 detentions (Dockling
Section 136 states that once an arrest has been made police must assist the individual to a place of safety (Mental Health Act 1983, s. 136 (1)). To ensure the safety of the individual and the public, until an assessment can be conducted and future treatment has been decided upon (House of Commons 2015). A place of safety, is defined by law, as residential accommodation provided by a local authority (Lynch et al 2002; Borschmann et al 2010), such as: A&E departments, police stations and psychiatric units (Lynch et al 2002). However, it is debated whether a police station should be considered as a place of safety (House of Commons 2015). As, when an individual is detained in custody, the police are expected to become untrained psychiatrists (Costen and Milen 1999). Nonetheless, the Code of Practice Mental Health Act 1983 (2008) states that police stations should only be used as a place of safety in exceptional circumstances. Yet, research and inspection work have consistently found that police cells …show more content…
Yet, the use of police custody as a place of safety will lead to the inevitable expectation of police to care for the mentally ill (Costen and Milen 1999). Despite claims that the detention process for a section 136 detainees is the same procedure for a suspected criminal, in that the individual is stripped of all their property, and on occasions not given the opportunity to make a phone call (HMIC 2013). Furthermore, police cells are noisy, small and unpleasant (Home Office 2014), which can not only lead the detainee to feel treated like a criminal, but can exacerbate their condition (Dockling 2009; Hewitt 2009; HMIC 2013). This environment has led section 136 detainees to report feeling frightened and distressed (Riley et al 2011; Home Office 2014). These concerns, may explain why 50% of deaths in custody are section 136 detentions (Dockling