Information for Professionals

This Act, along with the Care and Support Statutory Guidance establishes the legal framework for safeguarding adults’ work. Our policy must operate within this framework. The statutory guidance outlines the expectations that must be addressed in the policies and processes of all partners involved in safeguarding adults, particularly regarding local authorities’ decision-making roles in safeguarding enquiries.

• Making Safeguarding Personal

This sector-led improvement initiative emphasises that safeguarding adult inquiries and reviews should maintain the adult with care and support needs at the centre and in control as much as possible. The effectiveness of these inquiries and reviews is measured by how well they identify and meet the individual’s desired outcomes.

To better understand Making Safeguarding Personal, please read “Myths and Realities about Making Safeguarding Personal” by the Local Government Association, which addresses misconceptions about Making Safeguarding Personal.

• Harrow Safeguarding Adults Board

The Board establishes the local context and sets expectations for the Council and other partners. Its policies and procedures provide the framework for this policy and procedure.

According to the Care Act, a Safeguarding Adults Board (SAB) has three core responsibilities:

1. The SAB must publish a strategic plan for each financial year outlining how it aims to achieve its main objective and the actions each member will take to support this goal. This plan should be developed with input from the local community and must include consultation with the local Healthwatch organization. It should be evidence-based, utilizing all available data and intelligence from partners to inform and shape the plan.

2. The SAB is required to publish an annual report that details what it has accomplished in the past year to meet its main objective and implement its strategic plan. This report should also outline the contributions made by each member in executing the strategy and include the findings from any Safeguarding Adults Reviews and the subsequent actions taken.

3. The SAB must conduct any Safeguarding Adults Review in accordance with Section 44 of the Act.

• Six principles for safeguarding adults 

The following Government’s six principles for safeguarding adults which underpin all adult safeguarding work are:

• empowerment
• prevention
• proportionality
• protection
• partnership
• accountability

The Human Rights Act 1998 outlines the fundamental rights and freedoms to which everyone in the UK is entitled.

This Act incorporates the rights specified in the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) into domestic British law. The Human Rights Act was enacted in the UK in October 2000.

The Act sets out the human rights in a series of ‘Articles’. Each article deals with a different right which are taken from ECHR and are commonly known as the ‘Convention Rights’.

Some of the most important articles include:

Article 2: Right to life

Article 3: No one shall be subjected to torture or to inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.

Article 4: Prohibition of slavery and forced labour

Article 5: No one shall be deprived of his liberty save in accordance with a procedure prescribed by law

Article 8: Right to respect for private and family life.

The Mental Capacity Act (MCA) 2005 is designed to protect and empower people who may lack the mental capacity to make their own decisions about their care and treatment. It applies to people aged 16 and over.

It covers decisions about day-to-day things like what to wear or what to buy for the weekly shop, or serious life-changing decisions like whether to move into a care home or have major surgery.

But just because a person has one of these health conditions does not necessarily mean they lack the capacity to make a specific decision.

Someone can lack capacity to make some decisions (for example, to decide on complex financial issues) but still have the capacity to make other decisions (for example, to decide what items to buy at the local shop).

MCA principles:

• • a person must be assumed to have capacity unless it is established that they lack capacity
  • a person is not to be treated as unable to make a decision unless all practicable steps to help him to do so have been taken without success
  • a person is not to be treated as unable to make a decision merely because he makes an unwise decision
  • an act done or decision made under this Act for or on behalf of a person who lacks capacity must be done, or made, in his best interests
  • before the act is done, or the decision is made, regard must be had to whether the purpose for which it is needed can be as effectively achieved in a way that is less restrictive of the person’s rights and freedom of action

To access the guidance, please click on the following link:  https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2005/9/contents

Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS)

What are DoLS?

The Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) introduced legal protections known as the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) in 2009. These safeguards are designed to protect adults aged 18 and over who lack the mental capacity to consent to their care or treatment arrangements.

DoLS ensure that individuals are not unlawfully deprived of their liberty in hospitals or care homes and that any restrictions on their freedom are lawful, necessary, and proportionate. A lack of mental capacity can result from several causes, including:

• • • Stroke or brain injury
    • Mental health conditions
    • Dementia
    • Learning disabilities
    • Confusion, drowsiness, or unconsciousness due to illness or treatment
    • Substance misuse

Who do DoLS protect?

DoLS are in place to protect vulnerable individuals who:

– Are residing in care homes or hospitals
– Are in situations where their freedom is restricted
– Lack the mental capacity to make decisions regarding their care or treatment

The safeguards aim to ensure that individuals receive the care they need in the least restrictive way possible. They help to:

• • Prevent arbitrary decisions that might deprive vulnerable people of their liberty
  • Provide legal avenues for challenging unlawful deprivation through the Court of Protection
  • Protect the rights and freedoms of individuals who are unable to speak or decide for themselves

When should DoLS be considered?

DoLS apply when a person is:

– Under continuous supervision and control
– Not free to leave the care setting

Originally, DoLS applied only to hospitals and care homes. However, the criteria now cover a broader range of living arrangements, including:

• Supported living environments
• Adult placements
• Small group homes

In these cases, an application must be made to the Court of Protection for authorisation.

Applying for a DoLS Assessment
DoLS assessments apply to individuals:

– Living in Harrow, including self-funders
– Placed outside of Harrow but funded by Harrow Council or the NHS (CCG)

• Form_1_Standard_and_Urgent_Request_Final_DoLS
• Form_2_Further_Authorisation_Request_Final_DoLS

To access the DoLS resources, please click on the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/deprivation-of-liberty-safeguards-forms-and-guidance

The Equality Act 2010 established an Equalities Duty for public bodies.

In our daily work, we are dedicated to engaging with all individuals who may have impaired decision-making capacity, as well as their families and support networks. Our goals are to:

– Eliminate discrimination
– Promote equality of opportunity
– Foster good relations between individuals from different backgrounds while carrying out our activities

We are committed to advancing equality and inclusion in accordance with the protected characteristics defined in the Equality Act 2010, which include:

– Age
– Disability
– Gender reassignment
– Marriage and civil partnership
– Pregnancy and maternity
– Race
– Religion or belief
– Sex
– Sexual orientation

The procedures and guidance accompanying this policy will outline ways of working that fully incorporate these principles and support equitable and respectful engagement with all individuals.

The Domestic Abuse Act is set to provide further protections to the millions of people who experience domestic abuse, as well as strengthen measures to tackle perpetrators (Domestic Abuse Act: Factsheet – Home Office in the media).

The act:

• creates a statutory definition of domestic abuse
• establishes the office of Domestic Abuse Commissioner
• prohibits offenders from cross-examining their victims in person in the family courts
• creates a domestic abuse protection notice (DAPN) and domestic abuse protection order (DAPO)
• provides a statutory basis for the Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme (Clare’s law) guidance
• creates a new domestic abuse offence in Northern Ireland to criminalise controlling or coercive behaviour
• creates a statutory presumption that victims of domestic abuse are eligible for special measures in the criminal courts
• enables domestic abuse offenders to be subject to polygraph testing as a licence condition following release from custody
• places a duty on local authorities to give support to victims of domestic abuse and their children in refuges and safe accommodation
• requires local authorities to grant new secure tenancies to social tenants leaving existing secure tenancies for reasons connected with domestic abuse
• extends the extra-territorial jurisdiction of the criminal courts of England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland to further violent and sexual offences (Domestic Abuse Act 2021 | The Law Society).

The Prevent Strategy 2011 is part of the UK government’s counter-terrorism strategy known as CONTEST, which has four main components:

1. Pursue: to prevent terrorist attacks
2. Prevent: to stop people from becoming terrorists or supporting terrorism
3. Protect: to strengthen defences against terrorist attacks
4. Prepare: to lessen the impact of attacks that do occur

The main objective is to prevent individuals from being radicalised and drawn into terrorism. Section 3.10 emphasises the importance of collaboration among various sectors, including local authorities, education, and healthcare. It also highlights the need for community engagement and the establishment of clear roles and responsibilities within these sectors.

The Public Interest Disclosure Act (PIDA) of 1998 is the UK’s whistleblowing legislation that offers legal protection to workers who report concerns about misconduct at work, commonly referred to as “disclosures in the public interest.”

The primary objective of PIDA is to safeguard whistle-blowers from unfair treatment, dismissal, or victimisation when they raise legitimate concerns about the following issues:

• Risks to health or safety
• Environmental damage
• Criminal offenses
• Miscarriages of justice
• Non-compliance with legal obligations
• Cover-ups of wrongdoing

If a worker is dismissed or treated unfairly as a result of blowing the whistle, they have the right to:

• File a claim with an employment tribunal
• Seek reinstatement, compensation, or both
• Access unfair dismissal

The Modern Slavery Act 2015 aims to combat modern slavery, protect victims, and increase penalties for offenders. It brought together various offences related to slavery and human trafficking into a single Act for the first time and strengthened the UK’s response to these serious crimes.

Modern slavery includes:

• Human trafficking (for sexual exploitation, labour, criminal activity, or domestic servitude)

• Forced labour

• Debt bondage

• Servitude

• Exploitation of children

• Slavery-like practices

Victims are often coerced, deceived, or threatened into these situations and may be unable to leave due to fear, debt, or control by their traffickers.

The act will:

• consolidate and simplify existing offences into a single act
• ensure that perpetrators receive suitably severe punishments for modern slavery crimes (including life sentences)
• enhance the court’s ability to put restrictions on individuals where it’s necessary to protect people from the harm caused by modern slavery offences
• create an independent anti-slavery commissioner to improve and better coordinate the response to modern slavery
• introduce a defence for victims of slavery and trafficking
• place a duty on the secretary of state to produce statutory guidance on victim identification and victim services
• enable the secretary of state to make regulations relating to the identification of and support for victims
• make provision for independent child trafficking advocates
• introduce a new reparation order to encourage the courts to compensate victims where assets are confiscated from perpetrators
• enable law enforcement to stop boats where slaves are suspected of being held or trafficked
• require businesses over a certain size to disclose each year what action they have taken to ensure there is no modern slavery in their business or supply chains https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/modern-slavery-bill

To access the Modern Slavery Act 2015, please click on the following link: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2015/30/contents