Tag Archives: police
Police: A&E 'better' than cells for mentally unwell
Detention in cells is intended to be used only in exceptional circumstances
Ch Supt Irene Curtis says A&E would be a “better place” when mental health units are unable to take them.
Care minister Norman Lamb has described the standard of some crisis care as a “national scandal.”
The Association of Chief Police Officers says dealing with mentally ill people takes up a fifth of police time.
Police can detain people where no crime has been committed but they suspect the person is mentally unwell. The temporary police power is called a section 136.
