Explains what the Mental Capacity Act 2005 is and why it matters and is intended to help board members of care providers ensure vulnerable service users are not missing out on protections which are their legal right. The paper briefly discusses: capacity and consent; consent on someone else’s behalf; acting where people lack capacity to make their own decisions; best interests; restraint and restriction of liberty; deprivation of liberty; and ill-treatment and neglect. The paper includes a table setting out some questions board members of care providers might want to ask their officers and managers to get assurance that the MCA is being properly applied throughout their organisations.

This document provides guidance in relation to the commissioners’ duty to ensure provider services are delivered in accordance with the provisions of the Mental Capacity Act and that the rights of those who use services are promoted and protected.

Guidance for care providers on how to apply the Mental Capacity Act during the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. The resource considers the issues that should be considered when thinking about care and treatment that might involve restrictions because of Coronavirus; the cases where DoLS authorisations have already been granted; and the impacts of the Coronavirus Act 2020.

This audit is to help the CCG gain assurance that the Mental Capacity Act is embedded in commissioned organisations. Commissioners have a duty to ensure that all provider services are delivered in accordance with the provisions of the Mental Capacity Act, and that the rights of those who use the service are promoted and protected. CCGs have a duty to ensure providers of healthcare understand the MCA, apply it and monitor compliance.