Mental Health and Capacity Reform: delivery plan October 2023 to April 2025

Our Vision and Purpose

The purpose of the Programme is to update our legislation and bring about wider changes to the way that people experience and access their rights. This will help us to achieve our vision over time, which is:

"…to enable people to live well, with choice and control over their lives, care and treatment."

The Programme will enhance the way in which rights are protected, respected and fulfilled; including people’s rights to live independently, participate in and make decisions about their care and treatment and access rights-based models of support, particularly for people experiencing mental illness and adults who lack capacity.

To deliver this, the Programme will focus on achieving three strategic aims:

1 Law Reform: to strengthen human rights protections in mental health and capacity law

2 Improving Support: to further embed a human rights based approach within services and wider systems of support

3 Strengthening Accountability: to ensure that there are strong systems of accountability for upholding human rights

Over time, the reforms we deliver will help us to achieve our high level outcomes:

• Our laws, policies and practices provide the best possible protections for human rights
• Anyone who requires support is treated fairly, with dignity and in line with their rights
• People are supported to express their views and have choice and control over any support they receive, including care and treatment
• There are strong mechanisms for accountability and effective safeguards overseeing how human rights are respected, protected and fulfilled

Our Vision

"…to enable people to live well, with choice and control over their own lives, care and treatment"

Drivers for Change

• Developments in thinking and international standards on human rights and practice
• Changing and rising needs for services and support
• Publication of the SMHLR setting out new recommendations for change

Our Purpose

To update our legislation and bring about wider changes to the way that people experience and access their rights

Our Aims

1. Law Reform

2. Improving Support

3. Strengthening Accountability

Our Outcomes

• Our laws, policies and practices provide the best possible protections for human rights
• Anyone who requires support is treated fairly, with dignity and in line with their rights
• People are supported to express their views and have choice and control over any support they receive, including care and treatment
• There are strong mechanisms for accountability and effective safeguards overseeing how human rights are being respected, protected and fulfilled

Our Approach

• A focus on people with mental illness and adults who lack capacity
• Incremental/staged reform over time
• Urgent issues first, embedding rights in practice

Ways of Working

• Cross-government, aligned with wider transformations across health and social care and wider human rights landscape
• Developing/building on partnerships to support improvements in practice