May Vows End To Mental Health Police Custody

People with mental health problems will no longer be held in police cells but proper "places of safety" under a £15m plan being announced by Theresa May.

The proposal will mean the thousands of people detained under the Mental Health Act each year will no longer end up in cells looked after by police officers but in a place they can be cared for by medically trained professionals.

The Home Secretary will commit £15m to the NHS to fund suitable alternatives to police custody for those detained under the act.

It comes after a 16-year-old girl was held in a police cell for two days in November by police in Devon because no mental health bed could be found.

Devon and Cornwall Assistant Chief Constable Paul Netherton was so frustrated by the situation he took to Twitter, posting: "We have a 16yr old girl suffering from mental health issues held in police custody. There are no bed available in the uk! #unacceptable."

She was eventually found a bed in Norwich, the other side of the country from her family.

It is estimated that police spend between 20% and 40% of their time dealing with people with mental illness.

Mrs May will announce the plans when she addresses the annual conference of the Police Federation of England and Wales.

In her first speech since being reappointed to the role following the election, she will say: "Nobody wins when the police are sent to look after people suffering from mental health problems.

"Vulnerable people don't get the care they need and deserve, and the police can't get on with the job they are trained to do."

She will add: "The right place for a person suffering a mental health crisis is a bed, not a police cell. And the right people to look after them are medically trained professionals, not police officers."

At the conference last year Mrs May stunned the federation with a stinging attack on officers in which she listed a series of scandals including the Plebgate row and the Stephen Lawrence case and said officers showed contempt for the public.

She said it was "not enough to mouth platitudes about a few bad apples" and announced she would cut federation funding completely.

It led one officer, who had served for 21 years, to say: "I've never had such an attack and a personal kicking ... "

Under the plans, other places - rather than just health settings or police stations - will qualify as "places of safety".

The law will also be amended so those under 18 are never taken to police cells and cells can only be used for adults if behaviour is so extreme they cannot otherwise be dealt with safely.

The current maximum time for which a person can be detained to undergo medical assessment will also be reduced from 72 hours.

The reforms will be outlined in the Queen’s Speech next week, which will set out in detail the Government’s plans for the next five years as laid down in the Conservative manifesto before the election.