A report released by Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC) found that in some cases, police were left with "no other option" but to hold vulnerable adults, the mentally ill and vulnerable children in custody due to a lack of help from the NHS and social services.
The review, commissioned by Home Secretary Theresa May, expressed concerns that local authorities weren’t meeting key duties to accommodate vulnerable children who are detained by police, while it found that police officers were being forced to respond to mental health issues, despite being "wholly unsuited" to such demands.
Vulnerable children and adults need care, not custody. Report our report out today: http://t.co/tzjlrbt457
— HMIC (@HMICgov) March 10, 2015
It also found that the lack of services was placing a strain on police, which contributed to the number of “avoidable” instances where vulnerable people were taken into custody.
HM Inspector of Constabulary Dru Sharpling said the report’s findings were a concern.
"There can be no argument that the needs of a child, left abandoned by his or her parents, or a person in the midst of a mental health crisis, are often very different to those of a serial offender. Yet the bricks and mortar of the police cells do not and cannot make that distinction. I think the public would be surprised to learn that police cells are very often full of vulnerable adults and children, rather than suspects accused of serious crimes."
"I am particularly concerned to find that on occasions when officers were left with no other option, they resorted to detaining vulnerable people in police custody in order to get them the support they needed," he said.
More Care Needed, Not Cells
Police officials have welcomed the report’s findings, saying that it recognises the additional strain placed on police resources when working with issues that should be perhaps dealt with by other authorities.
"It’s a scandal that people with mental illness are being held in police cells" > our response to new @HMICgov report http://t.co/pp84IpFtx1
— RethinkMentalIllness (@Rethink_) March 10, 2015
Chief Superintendent of the police superintendents' association of England and Wales Irene Curtis said: "I have had serious concerns for a long time about the use of police stations as places of safety for vulnerable adults and children with mental health issues.
"A police cell is simply the wrong place for someone in crisis who needs specialist medical support in a health environment: the practice of using a cell as a place of safety needs to stop."
'Scandalous and Shameful' Treatment Is 'Costing Lives'
The use of police cells to hold vulnerable people instead of social and health care services has also raised questions about the ongoing impacts such practices might have on those affected.
Brian Dow, Director of external affairs for Rethink Mental Illness says more funding is needed to set up mental health care facilities and preventative programs to stop those vulnerable people from ending up in police custody.
"It's scandalous and shameful that thousands of people – including children and young people – experiencing mental health problems are being locked up in police cells.
"It's unacceptable that there simply aren't enough suitable crisis services available across the country, and where they do exist, they are badly underfunded and overstretched."
"This has got to change because it's costing lives. We need commissioners of local health services to put much greater investment into crisis care, so that anyone experiencing mental health problems can get quality emergency support locally, when they need it. We also want to see more funding for early intervention services, to help people avoid reaching crisis point in the first place. Without that investment, the system will continue to fail people when they are at their most vulnerable."
