Monitoring the Mental Health Act (CQC, 29 January 2026)

Summary

The Care Quality Commission has published a report called: Monitoring the Mental Health Act is our annual report on the use of the Mental Health Act 1983 (MHA).

It looks at how providers are caring for patients, and whether patients' rights are being protected.

The MHA is the legal framework that provides authority for hospitals to detain and treat people who have a mental illness and need protection for their own health or safety, or the safety of other people. The MHA also provides more limited community-based powers, community treatment orders and guardianship.