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Adult social care: Professionals

IMPORTANT NOTICE – DOCUMENTS UNDER REVIEW

The documents on this page are currently under review following the Supreme Court’s judgment in[2026] UKSC 16, which unanimously overruled the majority decision in Cheshire West [2014] UKSC 19. The content may not fully reflect the current legal position and should be read in conjunction with the Supreme Court judgment until the review process is complete. The full judgement is available https://supremecourt.uk/cases/uksc-2025-0042

Training by Quest

Quest Training, provided by Focus Adult Social Care, offers a range of training courses free of charge for those within North East Lincolnshire. This offer is open to individuals as well as private and independent organisations.

Training and Wellbeing Hub
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Safeguarding concerns

Safeguarding vulnerable adults

Dealing with allegations (against professionals)

Report a DASM concern

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Community intelligence

Humberside Police has created an electronic form to make submitting intelligence to the police easier and quicker.

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NHS Safeguarding

Professionals supporting Carers

Identifying and signposting informal Carers is a responsibility of all health and care professionals, whether you notice Carers as part of your work with the public or within a work setting with other professionals. Professionals aren’t expected to be experts on Carers and their needs, but they are expected to know the basics to ensure that Carers in need can be directed to appropriate support. 

As professionals and representatives of your organisation, you have a responsibility to Carers – both those you meet in public and those in your workplace – to identify and signpost (with consent) to resources and other organisations that can help them. See below for the key organisations for referral – the Carers Support Service and SPA. This includes the duty to refer them (with their consent) for a Carers Assessment, to:

  • Single Point of Access for adult carers supporting adults (for everything except mental health)
  • Navigo for adult carers supporting adults for mental health
  • Young Carers Team for young carers
  • North East Lincolnshire Council for parent carers (the team their child is linked to, if there is one, or refer through where necessary to 01472 326292)

You also have a responsibility as a professional to be aware of Carers in the workforce, to signpost them to support options (via the Carers Support Service and SPA or through the digital resource) and to encourage them (if appropriate) to discuss their caring status with their manager. Where you manage Carers, you have an additional responsibility to ensure you are aware of the potential demands on Carer time and the challenges working carers face. You should also familiarise yourself with any carers policy your workplace has.

Your last key responsibility is safeguarding. All children are considered vulnerable due to their position of dependency, but Young Carers are at increased vulnerability due to their caring position. Adult and Parent Carers are also at potential higher risk, owing to the dynamic of dependency, guilt and increased stress/tiredness that can result from caring. Those cared for are also at higher risk. As a result, professionals need to be increasingly vigilant around families where informal care is happening, to ensure the safety of all parties.

For Adult safeguarding concerns, call 01472 256 256, for Child safeguarding concerns, call 01472 326292 option 2. In the case of an emergency, dial 999.

The Carers’ Support Service

The Carers’ Support Service works with organisations and professionals to raise the profile and awareness of Carers in North East Lincolnshire. The aim is to identify and support Carers by providing professionals with an understanding of Carers, including the needs of Carers and the challenges they face.

The Carers’ Support Service can provide training and talks to groups and individuals completely free, and can work with you so that you are confident about the support available to Carers and what you can do to support a Carer in your role. This training aims to provide the definition of a Carer, explore the challenges Carers face, covers basic legal rights of Carers and the support available for Carers in North East Lincolnshire.

  • To liaise with the Carers’ Support Service, ensuring information regarding support for Carers is kept up to date
  • Filters information to colleagues
  • Supports in the identification of Carers in the workplace
  • Supports colleagues by signposting to local support
  • Champions identified Carers, ensuring their views and needs are taken into account during implementation/changes of policies and procedures
  • Works with managers and colleagues to help create a Carers friendly workplace, where Carers feel they can talk to their managers about their caring role
  • If you need to signpost carers for support with complaints or advocacy, or if their complaint is about the Carers Centre, please direct to The Carers’ Support Service.
  • If it’s a trend and they need a community advocate voice, it should be Healthwatch.
  • Complaints, compliments or queries about a specific service should go directly to the organisation.
  • If none of the above apply, contact The Carers’ Support Service for advice.

Mental Capacity Act 2005 resources

The MCA is the law that explains what to do when a person is not able to make decisions for themselves. North East Lincolnshire’s MCA and Deprivation of Liberty policy sets out local expectations about how the law is applied. One of the policy’s aims is to support the development of a legally literate workforce, through use of shared tools and access to a shared programme of learning. This page shares tools, resources and information about training.

Download the local NEL Mental Capacity Act 2005 and Deprivation of Liberty Policy (Word, 129KB)

Capacity assessment tools

Best interests decision tools

Guidance on prescription and administration of medication without consent

You can also read some worked through capacity assessments examples recorded in our capacity assessment template. These have been created with common scenarios in mind, to help staff understand how they might approach and record a capacity assessment. They are intended as examples only and should not be copied verbatim when undertaking/recording real assessments. Each assessment is different and each person being assessed should be approached on the basis of their individual circumstances. That means that any information will need to be tailored to them.

  • ‘Steven’ is a 62 year old male living alone in a privately owned terraced property. Steven recently came to the attention of the council due to concerns having been raised regarding the condition of his property, including reports of vermin in and around his home. Due to the housing team’s concerns around both the property and the appearance of Steven, a referral was made to adult mental health services. Read the assessment (PDF, 234KB) 
  • ‘Betty’ arrives at a community inpatient unit; she is at risk of falls. Staff are concerned that she may lack capacity to consent to the use of the sensor mats which could help her stay safe. Read the assessment (Word, 67KB) 
  • ‘Mrs Blue’ is in acute hospital following a stroke; she has difficulty swallowing and is at risk of choking. Staff are concerned that she may lack capacity to consent to insertion of a nasogastric (NG) feeding tube. Read the assessment (Word, 73KB) 
  • ‘Julie’ is a young woman with Down Syndrome and a learning disability, living in a supported living setting. Julie has developed an intimate relationship, and staff are concerned that she may lack capacity to engage in sexual relations. Read the assessment (Word, 69KB) 

The Safeguarding Adults Board has published its learning and workforce development strategy.  The strategy sets out local expectations regarding safeguarding and Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) training.  Its aim is to help ensure staff get the skills they need to do their job.  It seeks to achieve that by enabling employing organisations to identify staff training needs, plan to meet those needs, and assess whether or not the identified training needs have been met. 

Find the full strategy at Safeguarding Adults Board Multi-Agency Learning & Workforce Development Strategy 2023 – 2026 (PDF, 483KB) .

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These documents are from a third-party source, so may not be completely accessible. Please contact Quest if you have any difficulty.

This pathway is made up of two sessions. Although there is no requirement to access them in any particular order, it is strongly recommended that attendance on the Safeguarding Foundation session should take place prior to accessing the Safeguarding Adults: Prevention, Responding and Making Enquiries session.

For more information about these sessions, please access Quest or read:

These documents are from a third-party source, so may not be completely accessible. Please contact Quest if you have any difficulty.

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This pathway comprises a range of different sessions aimed to thoroughly explore the MCA. If accessing this pathway in full, all sessions must be completed in order.

For more information about these sessions, please access Quest or read the MCA Training Pathway (PDF, 246KB) 

Further information and resources are available to support practice around working with the Mental Capacity Act at: Mental Capacity Act 2005 | NELC

These documents are from a third-party source, so may not be completely accessible. Please contact Quest if you have any difficulty.

A new checklist has been created to help providers when accepting a new admission to their care. The checklist is intended to help residential and supported living providers ensure that all aspects of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) are considered immediately. The checklist has been created in response to locally identified issues with input from local providers.

This animated mini-series, available on YouTube, explores the MCA in a digestible format which is accessible for all levels.  Each animation in the series explores an element of the MCA.

  • Episode 1 – Let’s Talk: advanced care planning – Advance Decisions to Refuse Treatment and Advance Statements.
  • Episode 2 – Whose decision is it anyway?: who can make a best interest decision on behalf of an individual who lacks the relevant capacity.
  • Episode 3 – The Court of Protection: what is the Court and what does it do?  When should applications be made to it?
  • Episode 4 – Liberty Protection Safeguards (LPS):  what are the LPS and when will they come into force?  Why and how will the law change?  NB a delay to the LPS has been announced since this episode of the mini-series was made.
  • Episode 5 – Preparing for Liberty Protection Safeguards (LPS): find out about North East Lincolnshire’s preparation for LPS.  NB a delay to the LPS has been announced since this episode of the mini-series was made.
  • Episode 6 – Necessary and proportionate: what do the terms ‘necessary’ and ‘proportionate’ mean in the context of a deprivation of liberty.
  • Episode 7 – Deprivation of Liberty: all things deprivation of liberty!
  • Episode 8 – Mental Capacity: hints and tips to support practitioners when considering capacity, as well as dispelling some common myths!
  • Episode 9 – Relevant Person’s Representative RPR: exploration of an important role within Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) authorisations’.
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Access the mini-series using this link – MCA Mini Series

Deciding Right App

The Deciding Right app guides staff through the process of making care decisions who lack or may lack capacity for those decisions. The app will not provide an answer, but will help ensure that the way decisions are made complies with the MCA.

Staff can download the app:

DoLS (deprivation of liberty safeguards) App

The directors of Edge Training have created an App giving an overview of DoLS and providing easy access to key national resources. 

Staff can read more about, and download, the App here: NEW DoLS APP

Deprivation of Liberty – Operational Handbook

Operational guidance to staff working across health and care focused on deprivation of liberty in any setting where a person may receive care or treatment.

Challenging DoLS authorisations (s21A)

Those who are deprived of liberty have the right to challenge it in court.  BIAs and MAs identify where a person may want to make an application to the court, and make sure that the supervisory body (the Council) knows it.

The person’s representative (RPR) ensures that an application is made where the person wishes (or would wish, if they had capacity to say so) to make an application.

This section links to guidance on when an application should be made, and making the application effective.   

Process for authorisation

Draft applications to authorise a DoL are peer reviewed by the pre-authorisation panel.  Applications approved by the panel are submitted to signatories to authorise.

A DoL can only be authorised via Deprivation of Liberty Safeguarding (DoLS) where the person deprived of liberty is not ineligible for DoLS.  A person ineligible for DoLS may have their detention authorised via the Mental Health Act 1983.

Guidance re authorising a DoL at the interface between the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and, primarily aimed at BIAs and mental health staff.

Assessment and decision-making

Best Interests Assessors (BIAs) assess capacity and best interests; they make recommendations about the length of an authorisation and whether any conditions should be attached to it. Managing Authorities (MAs) comply with authorisations.

Capacity and best interests assessments: guidance for BIAs

Duration of an authorisation:

Conditions attached to an authorisation:

DoLS Mental Health Assessors (MHAs) decide whether a person deprived of liberty has a mental disorder, and is eligible for DoLS.

Mental health assessment: guidance for MHAs

Feedback from person or their representative

Any person deprived of liberty (‘P’) should be given the opportunity to share their experience of the authorisation process, if they are able to.  Not all Ps will have the mental capacity to give feedback, but some may.

All representatives (RPRs or Rule 1.2 reps) should be asked to give feedback on supporting P through the process.

This section links to forms to use when seeking feedback, and guidance on when to ask for it.  

Community / non standard settings

Arrangements to deprive a person of their liberty outside of a hospital or care home cannot be authorised using DoLS.  Arrangements which amount to a DoL in other settings – such as in the person’s own home or in supported living – must be authorised via a court process. 

This section links to guidance on identifying a potential DoL, making a referral for investigation and deciding on next steps.   

Community/ non-standard process: guidance for care practitioners and legal staff on identification, referral and decision making.

Specialist assessor competencies

DoL assessments are carried out by qualified professionals.  The DoLS require that DoLS assessments are undertaken only by those with additional experience and qualifications. 

The supervisory body (the Council) is required to ensure that the assessors that it uses have and maintain the necessary skills and qualifications.

This section links to guidance on local approach and expectations.

Mental health support

We recognise that times are particularly tough in health and care settings at the moment, and we want to be able to offer you further wellbeing support.  There are a number of ways you can ask for help, or just a listening ear.

If you’re in immediate physical danger or have a medical emergency, call 999 now.

Resources for communication

These resources has been developed to give practitioners/frontline social work employees the tools to improve communication with individuals in a variety of settings. It is hoped better communication leads to building more effective relationships and a greater understanding of what is important to the individual, in an attempt to enable and encourage independent living.

Practice Framework

What is a practice framework? – It’s a collective belief system and value set that underpins the way we do professional practice in North East Lincolnshire. It’s rooted in the TLAP (Think Local Act Personal) “I” and “We” statements and is founded from the wellbeing principles within the Care Act.

Why do we have a practice framework?  – It sets the standard for the work that we do and is a benchmark for best practice. It aims to provide greater consistency in our approach and underpinning ethos across North East Lincolnshire and ensures people know what to expect when working with us.

Downloadable documents:

None of the information or resources accessible via this page are intended as legal advice or to circumvent professional discretion.

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