A ‘human’ approach to Places of Safety

The starting point to receiving mental healthcare support can sometimes begin at a crisis point, with a police officer, working in partnership with the local health network, taking a person to a Place of Safety or '136 suite', where they are assessed by a healthcare professional within a 24-hour period to decide on the next steps for treatment. The King's Fund reported that unfortunately, in the UK, people are not getting healthcare support early enough to prevent detention, despite national aims for interventions. This has led to a 45% increase in reported detention cases since 2017.¹

The Royal College of Psychiatrists document, CR 159: Standards on the use of Section 136 of the Mental Health Act 1983 (England and Wales),² describes how there is a shortage of appropriate facilities, and argues that more are needed to prevent inappropriate use of police custody and Accident and Emergency Departments. It goes on to describe the need for sufficient rooms within the Place of Safety to meet the local need.

The law keeps evolving to try to protect patients and the public when moving people to Places of Safety, but the environment of the destination itself is only briefly mentioned in HBN 03-01,3 and the aforementioned Royal College of Psychiatrists document,² with reference to some environmental factors, safety, robustness, and observation. It appears that such facilities are seen as a place to contain, detain, and assess, rather than a place to potentially aid the recovery process.