Leading charities urge the Prime Minister to end the inhumane imprisonment of disabled people before time runs out

The National Autistic Society and learning disability charity Mencap warn that, if the Government drops its Mental Health Bill before the next general election as feared, thousands of autistic people and people with learning disabilities will continue to be wrongly held in mental health hospitals

• The Government is running out of time to bring the Mental Health Bill into law before the next general election.
• Dropping the bill would mean backtracking on a Conservative manifesto promise to “...make it easier for people with learning disabilities and autism to be discharged from hospital and improve how they are treated in law.”
• Currently more than 2,000 autistic people and people with learning disabilities are stuck in mental health hospitals that can't meet their needs and can cause harm.
• The National Autistic Society and Mencap are launching open letters urging Rishi Sunak to act now to end this crisis.

The National Autistic Society and Mencap are calling on Rishi Sunak to reform outdated mental health law, as thousands of autistic people and people with learning disabilities remain stuck in mental health hospitals.

The Government published its draft Mental Health Bill last year, which proposed vital changes to the Mental Health Act. The bill is a chance to change outdated laws that define autism and learning disabilities as mental health conditions, and to introduce better protection for autistic people and people with learning disabilities.

Currently, 92% of the 2,000 autistic people and people with a learning disability in mental health units are detained under the Mental Health Act.[1] The bill was seen as a huge step forward in the campaign to stop the scandal of autistic people and people with learning disabilities being wrongly detained in mental health hospitals.

But now the Government is running out of time to introduce its Mental Health Bill so these important changes can become law ahead of the next general election. Dropping the bill would mean breaking the Conservative Party’s manifesto promise to “… make it easier for people with learning disabilities and autism to be discharged from hospital and improve how they are treated in law.”

According to Assuring Transformation NHS Digital data published today, in August 2023 2,040 autistic people and people with learning disabilities are in inpatient mental health hospitals in England and 1,325 (65%) of these people are autistic. There are 200 autistic people or people with learning disabilities who are under 18, and 95 of these are autistic.

Many of these people are stuck in mental health hospitals without access to appropriate support, in environments that lead to avoidable physical and mental deterioration. They are often far away from their homes and loved ones, with the average length of stay being more than five years. Furthermore, we know people are being subjected to overmedication, restraint, isolation and abuse in these settings.

NHS data shows that since the earlier draft bill was introduced over 450 days ago, 2,135 autistic people or people with learning disabilities have been wrongly admitted to hospital – an average of around four people per day. Research by Mencap shows the Government’s commitment to reduce inpatient numbers by 50% by March 2024 will not be achieved until November 2028 at the earliest at the current pace of change.

The recent NHS Safe and Wellbeing Review found that more than half (57%) of autistic people and people with learning disabilities were in hospitals away from their homes and families, while 41% of people did not need to be in hospital and their needs could be met in the community. Additionally, analysis by the National Autistic Society shows that, instead of decreasing since government targets were set, the proportion of autistic people in mental health hospitals has nearly doubled – from 35% in 2015 to 65% now.

The Government’s promised changes to the Mental Health Act are essential to achieve, and go beyond, the planned 50% reduction in inpatient numbers that was set out in the NHS Long Term Plan and re-committed to in the Building the Right Support Action Plan. The Mental Health Bill must be included in the King’s Speech on November 7 2023.

Leo Andrade is mother to son Stephen, 28, who has a learning disability and is autistic. Stephen was detained under the Mental Health Act for over six years, against the wishes of his family. Leo is campaigning alongside Mencap and the National Autistic Society to ensure autistic people and people with learning disabilities can no longer be wrongly locked up. 

Leo Andrade said: “My son Stephen has a learning disability and autism. Throughout his whole life it has been a battle to get the support that he needs. 

"In 2013 the right support broke down and he was sectioned under the Mental Health Act. He was locked away in a mental health hospital more than 70 miles from our home and the people who love him most. Stephen was over-medicated, restrained and traumatised in the hospital. I battled for years to get him out. 

“Stephen doesn’t have a mental health condition so should never have been detained in a mental health hospital. What my son desperately needed was the right environment and support to help him to be happy and enjoy his life in his community. He was failed by the system. 

“This is the experience of too many other people and their families. This is wrong and it is time to act.”

Alison Rodgers, mother of Adam, 31, who is currently an inpatient under the Mental Health Act, said: “Adam has spent half of his life in hospital. Today he’s still detained in hospital, and seems no closer to coming out, instead he has gone deeper and deeper into the system. He has a learning disability, autism and ADHD.

“Staff don't understand his autism, ADHD and sensory issues. They just see him as having 'challenging behaviour’ rather than that he is communicating he is upset.
 

“I have tried everything to bring him out into the community, but I'm not listened to. He's not a threat to anyone. He should have been given the right support package in the community instead, not sent to a high secure hospital. He has deteriorated in this environment. It is the wrong place to meet his needs.”  

Tim Nicholls, Head of Influencing and Research at the National Autistic Society, said: “This is one of the greatest human rights crises of our generation – and it must end now. Autism is not a mental health condition and mental health hospitals are not the right place for the vast majority of autistic people. Yet we’ve seen countless harrowing examples of people being locked away in seclusion and subjected to abuse in these settings.

“The trauma caused to those who are wrongly detained in hospitals, scared and alone without the right support they need, is unimaginable – with a devastating and long-lasting impact on their physical and mental health.

“The Government must urgently bring the Mental Health Bill into law so that autism is no longer defined as a “mental disorder”. But time is running out. We’re calling on as many people as possible to sign our open letter and tell Rishi Sunak that now is the Time to Act – this crisis cannot be allowed to continue.”

Dan Scorer, Head of Policy and Public Affairs at Mencap said: “It is unacceptable that in the 21st century the law allows for people with a learning disability and autistic people to be locked up in mental health hospitals for years on end when they don't have a mental health condition. 

“Being held in a mental health institution without a mental health condition is both wrong and deeply damaging and traumatic for people with a learning disability and their families.  “We need to see investment in early intervention and better community support to prevent admission in the first place.  

“Reforming this legislation is a crucial step so that people with a learning disability can no longer be institutionalised. Every delay in reforming the Act is another day where people are being wrongly detained. It is essential that the Bill be brought forward as a matter of urgency."

The National Autistic Society and Mencap are calling on the Government to bring the draft Mental Health Act Bill into law to ensure:

• Autistic people and people with learning disabilities cannot be detained in a mental health hospital under Section 3 of the Mental Health Act solely on the basis of having a learning disability or autism (without a co-occurring mental health condition).
• There is a strong duty to provide community services to autistic people and people with a learning disability to prevent them from reaching crisis point in the first place, and ensure those in hospital can be discharged in a timely way.
• Recommendations from Care, Education and Treatment Review actions are made enforceable, so people can be discharged from hospitals sooner.

To sign the open letter, visit the websites of the National Autistic Society and Mencap.