Liberty Protection Safeguards – where are we now?

In a newsletter a year ago, the Department of Health and Social Care ("DHSC") set out the planned milestones for the Liberty Protection Safeguards ("LPS"), with the aim of full implementation of the LPS in April 2022. So far the only “milestone” reached is the publication of an Impact Assessment in January 2021. The Code of Practice and Regulations, which were due in Spring 2021, are not yet available and so there has been no public consultation. Their publication is now anticipated in Winter 2021. So where are we now and what do we know?

At this stage, what we know about LPS from DHSC has come from the following sources:

- Minutes of the LPS Steering Group
- Factsheets
- Newsletters

There is a dedicated documents page from DHSC which is available here. The newsletters have identified what the proposed chapters will be for the new Code of Practice. There are also details of what it is intended the Regulations will cover. However, until these documents are published it is very difficult to comment on these.

We know that the Regulations will include transitional arrangements to enable LPS and DoLS to operate together for the first year after LPS comes into force. This means that those with an existing authorisation for their deprivation of liberty from the Court, or a DoLS Standard Authorisation, will continue until that authorisation comes to an end. Whilst there is uncertainty about LPS and the date for implementation, the current regimes continue to run and the necessary safeguards must be put in place. Join us at this webinar for a discussion about where we are now with LPS and a recap of what we know so far.