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The Mental Capacity Act Deprivation of Liberty safeguards

The Mental Capacity Act Deprivation of Liberty safeguards (formerly known as the Bournewood safeguards) were introduced into the Mental Capacity Act 2005 through the Mental Health Act 2007 (which received Royal Assent in July 2007).

What's new

26 November 2008

11 November:2008: Draft standard forms

Draft deprivation of liberty safeguards standard forms are being made available now in order to facilitate best practice, training and preparation in advance of April 2009. These forms are not to be used for making applications for deprivation of liberty authorisations, since they are not the final version that should be used for operationalising the safeguards procedures. The forms can be adapted but, if used in unedited form, they help all those involved in the safeguards processes to fully meet the requirements of the deprivation of liberty safeguards legislation. There are two separate forms and record-keeping guides, one for supervisory bodies and the other for managing authorities. The guide for supervisory bodies contains all the draft forms, as developed to date, for both supervisory bodies and for managing authorities. The guide for managing authorities contains only the forms for completion by managing authorities.

16 September 2008

The Mental Capacity (Deprivation of Liberty: Appointment of Relevant Person's Representative) (Amendment) Regulations 2008 were made on 5 September 2008 and laid before Parliament on 12 September 2008. These regulations correct a minor defect in the Mental Capacity (Deprivation of Liberty: Appointment of Relevant Person's Representative) Regulations 2008: they prevent supervisory bodies from selecting paid representatives from amongst their own employees, thus avoiding any conflicts of interest. The regulations are subject to the negative Parliamentary procedure and will come into force on 3 November 2008.

9 September 2008

Transitional arrangements for England

The Mental Capacity Act 2005 deprivation of liberty safeguards will be implemented from 1 April 2009. The purpose of this note is to explain the transitional arrangements that will apply in England for the month of April 2009 only.

Resource allocation

Local Authority Circular setting out the resources available for the year 2008-09 for the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and provisional figures for 2009-10 and 2010-11.

The MCA DOL safeguards

The MCA DOL safeguards apply to anyone:

  • aged 18 and over
  • who suffers from a mental disorder or disability of the mind – such as dementia or a profound learning disability
  • who lacks the capacity to give informed consent to the arrangements made for their care and / or treatment and
  • for whom deprivation of liberty (within the meaning of Article 5 of the ECHR) is considered after an independent assessment to be necessary in their best interests to protect them from harm.

The safeguards cover patients in hospitals, and people in care homes registered under the Care Standards Act 2000, whether placed under public or private arrangements.

The aim is to implement the safeguards in April 2009. The safeguards are designed to protect the interests of an extremely vulnerable group of service users and to:

  • ensure people can be given the care they need in the least restrictive regimes
  • prevent arbitrary decisions that deprive vulnerable people of their liberty
  • provide safeguards for vulnerable people
  • provide them with rights of challenge against unlawful detention
  • avoid unnecessary bureaucracy

Regulations and assessor training

The Mental Capacity (Deprivation of Liberty: Standard Authorisations, Assessments and Ordinary Residence) Regulations 2008 and The Mental Capacity (Deprivation of Liberty: Appointment of Relevant Person's Representative) Regulations 2008 come into force on 3 November 2008. This page contains information on the Regulations and best interests assessor and mental health assessor training.

Standard forms

Standard forms are being made available now in order to facilitate best practice, training and preparation in advance of April 2009. The forms can be adapted but as drafted they help all those involved in the safeguards processes to fully meet the requirements of the Deprivation of Liberty legislation. The first document, published on 29 October 2008, is for supervisory bodies and contains all the forms, developed to date, for both supervisory bodies and for managing authorities.

Implementation tool

The Department has developed an implementation tool that  local Mental Capacity Act implementation networks may wish to use when estimating the number of assessments and staff that are likely to be required in 2009 / 10.

Frequently asked questions

The first document provides information on the Mental Capacity Act Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards legislation in the form of a Frequently Asked Questions briefing.

Implementation / Commissioning Q&A

The second document provides information on the implementation of the Mental Capacity Act Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards, including commissioning issues in the form of a Frequently Asked Questions briefing. It will be updated over the coming months.

Training of Independent Mental Capacity Advocates (IMCAs)

In line with the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (Independent Mental Capacity Advocates) (General) Regulations 2006, IMCAs will need to be trained in order to act from April 2009 as Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards IMCAs. The Department of Health has commissioned Action for Advocacy to provide free two-day training courses for organisations that have contracts to provide an Independent Mental Capacity Advocacy (IMCA) Service, using materials developed by Advocacy Partners.

Further information is available on the Action for Advocacy website:

Contact the central project leads

Please send any questions or queries to Kate Hardy, Paul Gantley and Mike Preston at:

The Mental Capacity Act Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards
Wellington House Room 124
133 - 155 Waterloo Road
London SE1 8UG
or email:

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