Independent Mental Capacity Advocate Service

The Mental Capacity Act 2005 created a new service, the Independent Mental Capacity Advocate (IMCA) service.

It's purpose is to help vulnerable people who lack capacity and have no-one to appropriately consult regarding certain important decisions:

• Serious medical treatment
• The LA is proposing to arrange accommodation for someone for longer than 8 weeks
• The NHS body is proposing to arrange accommodation for someone for longer than 28 days

For people detained under the MHA:

• An IMCA is not required in relation to serious medical treatment given under the MHA for the person's mental disorder
• An IMCA is not required if the parent has to live in a particular place while on leave or as a result of a requirement imposed under the MHA, such as guardianship or supervised discharge order

Regulations of the MCA have extended the powers of local authorities and the NHS to instruct IMCAs in certain cases involving care reviews and adult protection cases.

Guidance on this can be found on the Adult protection, care reviews and IMCAs page.

NHS bodies and Local Authorities will have a duty to consult the IMCA in decisions involving people who have no family or friends, or when it is not appropriate to consult these parties.  Examples of these situations include:

• The family member or friend is not willing to be consulted about the best interests decision
• The family member or friend is too ill or frail
• There are reasons which make it impractical to consult with the family member or friend, for example, they live too far away
• A family member or friend may refuse to be consulted
• There is abuse by the family member or friend

The main benefits of the IMCA Service for the person who lacks capacity are:

• Having an independent person to review significant decisions being made
• Having an advocate who is articulate and knowledgeable not solely in relation to the Act but also about a person's rights, health and social care systems and community care law
• Receiving support from a person who is skilled at helping people who have difficulties with communication to make their views known
• Having an independent person who can support and represent them when certain serious decisions are being made and they have nobody else who can be consulted

There are benefits also for decision making bodies as practitioners working in those bodies may find that:

• The collaborative way in which IMCAs work will mean that practitioners are assisted in their decision making processes by a person with a good knowledge of the Act
• The information brought to the attention of the decision-maker by the IMCA may be extremely useful and can often save valuable time for the practitioner
• Complex decisions can be made with more confidence and in many cases more quickly due to the involvement of an IMCA.

How to refer to an IMCA?

Only someone within the local authority or an NHS body can refer to the IMCA Service.

Please complete the IMCA referral form and send to Advocacy Experience

IMCA@advocacyexperience.com 01925 651400

At the time when the referral is made it must be evident that:

• A person lacks the capacity to make the particular decision
• The decision is either serious medical treatment; a change in accommodation, a care review or an adult protection case
• There is nobody who can appropriately support and represent the person (does not apply to adult protection)

Contact Details

For further information and to refer please contact Advocacy Experience on:

4 Harvard Court, Quay Business Centre, Calver Road, Warrington, WA2 8LT
0844 800 2776 01925 651 400 IMCA@advocacyexperience.com www.advocacyexperience.com