Consultation on proposed changes to the Mental Capacity Act 2005 Code of Practice & implementation of the Liberty Protection Safeguards

Summary

The UK Government has opened a consultation on changes to the Mental Capacity Act (MCA) 2005 Code of Practice, and implementation of Liberty Protection Safeguards (LPS). This consultation is also seeking views on the LPS regulations, which will underpin the new system.

This consultation applies to England and Wales and is open until 7 July 2022.

Content

This is a joint consultation published by the Department of Health and Social Care and the Ministry of Justice.

The Mental Capacity Act applies in England and Wales, but some aspects of its application are devolved in Wales. The Welsh Government has therefore informed this consultation. The LPS will apply to people over the age of 16, and the Department for Education has been involved in the development of this new system.

This briefing paper from the Social Care Institute for Excellence (SCIE) provides a summary of the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards, an amendment to the Mental Capacity Act 2005.