Section 136: The Mental Health Pathway

Section 136 of the Mental Health Act 1983 gives a constable the power to remove a person from a public place to a place of safety if the constable believes that the person appears to be suffering from mental disorder and is in immediate need of care or control. The purpose of removal is to enable the person to be examined by a registered medical practitioner and interviewed by an approved mental health professional (AMHP) to determine what further care or treatment is appropriate.

The Policing and Crime Act 2017 made significant changes to section 136. A police station is no longer an appropriate place of safety for any person under section 136, regardless of age. The designated place of safety should be a health-based facility, typically a mental health assessment suite (also known as a "section 136 suite") operated by the NHS. The 2017 Act also extended section 136 to apply to any place other than a private dwelling, meaning that officers can now use the power in private places (such as a car park or a garden) as well as public places, but not inside a person's home.

Once the person is at the place of safety, they can be detained for up to 24 hours (reduced from 72 hours by the 2017 Act) for the purpose of assessment. A doctor authorised to do so under the Act may extend this by up to 12 hours if the person's condition makes it clinically necessary. During the detention, the person must be assessed as soon as practicable by a section 12 approved doctor and an AMHP. The assessment may result in the person being: admitted to hospital under section 2 or section 3 of the Mental Health Act; offered voluntary admission; referred to community mental health services; or released.

Police forces operate street triage schemes in which mental health professionals accompany or advise officers responding to incidents involving people who may be mentally unwell. The aim is to divert people to appropriate care without using section 136 where possible, reducing the time officers spend on mental health-related incidents and ensuring that people receive the right support from the right service.