Mental Health Bill Receives Royal Assent, Revolutionising Care
The new Mental Health Act has received Royal Assent, meaning it is now law, delivering on a key manifesto commitment.
It will reform the outdated Mental Health Act of 1983, which provides the legal framework to detain and treat people in a mental health crisis who are at risk of harm to themselves or others.
The modernised act will implement urgent reforms which experts have been calling for almost a decade, bringing mental health care into the 21st century and empowering patients to take charge of their treatment.
It will support NHS staff to provide more personalised care for those who need it.
“Health and Social Care Secretary Wes Streeting said:” For too long, thousands of vulnerable people in mental health crises have been failed by outdated laws that stripped away their dignity and voice.
“The new Mental Health Act will transform lives by putting patients back in control of their care, tackling the unacceptable disparities that have seen black people detained at disproportionately high rates, and giving NHS staff the tools to deliver care that truly helps people recover.
“This delivers on our manifesto commitment to finally bring mental health care into the 21st century. After years of neglect, we are rebuilding a mental health system to treat people with the dignity and respect they deserve.
Baroness Merron, Minister for Mental Health, said: “It has been a privilege to guide this landmark bill through Parliament on behalf of thousands of patients and families who have campaigned for change.
“These reforms address longstanding injustices in our mental health system. Patients will now have a genuine say in their treatment through statutory care and treatment plans. Families will be properly involved in decisions. And we’re tackling the unacceptable racial disparities that have seen Black people detained at over 3 times the rate of White people.
Today we’re delivering the modernisation that patients, families and clinicians have been calling for.
For years, patients have been let down by a mental health system that needs urgent reform. Those detained under the Mental Health Act have had too little say over their care and treatment and who should be involved in it.
Steve Gilbert OBE, who was diagnosed with bipolar disorder after being sectioned in 2010, is a national expert in living experience leadership who has spent over a decade improving mental health services with a focus on racial equity. As vice chair for the Mental Health Act Review, he supported the chair in making recommendations to the government.
The Mental Health Act implements reforms proposed by Sir Simon Wessely in his landmark Independent Review of the Mental Health Act in 2018. Sir Simon is a chair of psychological medicine at King’s College London and a world-leading figure in the field.
Sir Simon’s report flagged 4 core principles that needed to be reformed in the Mental Health Act, including giving patients more choice over their care and ensuring the act’s powers are used in the least restrictive way possible.
The government is now starting to develop the detailed guidance on the new act before it comes into force.
