Search results for ‘Subject term:"vulnerable adults"’ Sort:
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Justice denied: a summary of our investigation into the care and treatment of Ms A
- Author:
- MENTAL WELFARE COMMISSION FOR SCOTLAND
- Publisher:
- Mental Welfare Commission for Scotland
- Publication year:
- 2008
- Pagination:
- 8p.
- Place of publication:
- Edinburgh
Ms A is a 67 year old woman with a learning disability who has been in the care of the local authority since she was eight years old. This investigation into Ms A’s care was initiated in September 2006, after the Mental Welfare Commission was contacted by a housing association who were concerned about her vulnerability. They said Ms A had reported being raped. When they contacted the police, they discovered that similar assaults were alleged to have taken place previously. The housing association said that the social work department had not informed them of Ms A’s history of assaults and her related vulnerability. A key motivation for the investigation was the conviction that the circumstances surrounding Ms A’s experiences are not unique. Several recommendations are made that identify ways in which the Scottish Government, NHS Boards, social work departments, police, and professional regulatory bodies could improve our protective and judicial responses to people with a learning disability.
Briefing: Care Act changes to the police role in the safety and protection of adults at risk of harm and abuse
- Authors:
- SKILLS FOR CARE, NATIONAL SKILLS ACADEMY FOR SOCIAL CARE, COLLEGE OF SOCIAL WORK
- Publisher:
- Skills for Care
- Publication year:
- 2014
- Pagination:
- 2
- Place of publication:
- Leeds
Explains the role and responsibilities of the police in relation to the safety and protection of adults at risk of harm and abuse as set out in the Care Act. These include: empowering the community to have the confidence to identify and report signs of abuse and suspected criminal offences; training staff to recognise signs and take action to prevent abuse occurring; and identifying and managing perpetrators who choose to target adults who are vulnerable. (Edited publisher abstract)
Serious case review: the murder of Gemma Hayter: 9th August 2010: public summary
- Author:
- WARWICKSHIRE SAFEGUARDING ADULTS PARTNERSHIP
- Publisher:
- Warwickshire Safeguarding Adults Partnership
- Publication year:
- 2010
- Pagination:
- 63p.
- Place of publication:
- Warwick
Key agencies in Warwickshire have pledged their determination to work together on the lessons learned from the Serious Case Review into the tragic death of Gemma Hayter. Twenty-seven year old Gemma was a vulnerable adult who was known to a number of agencies throughout her life. Gemma’s body was found on 9 August 2010 on a disused railway line in Rugby. Her murder and the abuse that she suffered beforehand were committed by people she believed to be her friends. The five people who caused her death have been rightly brought to justice, three of whom are serving sentences for murder and two for manslaughter. The review concluded that although there was evidence that she was regularly exploited by people who knew her and she was known to many agencies, no single agency had a full picture of her life and the level of risk she was exposed to. The report makes recommendations for action from Warwickshire Safeguarding Adults Board, Warwickshire County Council Adult, Health and Community Services, Coventry & Warwickshire NHS Partnership Trust, The Local Medical Council and GP Consortia (Clinical Commissioning Groups), Rugby Borough Council, Warwickshire Police and Warwickshire Probation Trust.
Mental health and custody: a follow on study
- Author:
- CUMMINS Ian
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Adult Protection, 14(2), 2012, pp.73-81.
- Publisher:
- Emerald
This paper investigated the assessment of detained persons in police custody by Forensic Physicians (FP). Data were collected in cases where custody staff had identified a mental health concern and requested an FP assessment. This included questions regarding any links that the individuals had with community-based mental health services. Fifty nine FP assessments were requested. Only six members of this group had any contact with community-based mental health services. Of this group, three had not been in contact with mental health services for over a month. This study highlights that there is a group of individuals whose mental health causes concern to the police in a custody environment. In this study, the overwhelming majority of the group have no contact with mental health services. The research supports the recommendations of the Bradley Review for wider health care provision in custody settings.
Vulnerable adults in police custody
- Author:
- CUMMINS Ian
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Adult Protection, 22(1), 2020, pp.5-8.
- Publisher:
- Emerald
Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to discuss the recent National Appropriate Adult Network (NAAN) report on the role of the appropriate adult. Design/methodology/approach: This paper is based on the NAAN report and a review of relevant policy and research literature. Findings: There to Help 2 highlights that there are still significant gaps in the provision of appropriate adult schemes across England and Wales. These gaps potentially place vulnerable adults at increased risk. Originality/value: This paper is a review of recent research. (Edited publisher abstract)
Striking the right balance: police experience, perceptions and use of independent support persons during interviews involving people with intellectual disability
- Authors:
- HENSHAW Marie, SPIVAK Benjamin, THOMAS Stuart D. M.
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Applied Research in Intellectual Disabilities, 31(2), 2018, pp.e201-e211.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
Background: Several jurisdictions mandate the presence of an independent support person during police interviews with vulnerable people. The current study investigated police officers’ experiences and perceptions of these volunteers during interviews with people with intellectual disability(ies) (ID). Methods: The sample comprised 229 police officers who attended a mandatory firearms training course in Melbourne, Australia, in 2010. Results: Participants commonly reported utilising independent support persons and displayed a fair understanding of their role. Overall, volunteers were engaged more frequently than family/friends; police considered the volunteers to be more impartial during interviews, whereas family/friends provided a greater level of emotional support to interviewees. Conclusions: Independent support persons need to demonstrate two quite different types of support to people with intellectual disability(ies) during police interviews; these require quite different skill sets and suggest the need for more tailored training and support for these volunteers. Implications for future research and policy are discussed. (Edited publisher abstract)
Mental health, vulnerability and risk in police custody
- Authors:
- LEESE Maggie, RUSSELL Sean
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Adult Protection, 19(5), 2017, pp.274-283.
- Publisher:
- Emerald
Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to report on the findings of a case study that explored mental health difficulties and vulnerability within police custody. Design/methodology/approach: The design of the study was qualitative, and it utilised telephone, semi-structured interviews with all levels of the custody staff. This approach was taken because the aim of the study was to explore how people in different roles within the organisation worked to safeguard vulnerable people in custody. Findings: The findings from this study identified a number of interesting themes that could be explored further in later studies. Overall, the respondents expressed frustration that vulnerable people find themselves in police custody for low-level crime, when it could have been avoided with improved mental health services in the community. Additionally, the findings demonstrated that despite the processes that are designed to safeguard the detainee, tensions still exist including, timely access to mental health assessments, appropriate training and support for staff and the use of appropriate adults. Research limitations/implications: Although the study was small in scale, the custody facility delivered detainee facilities for about 5,000 individuals per year. The research and information obtained supported the police lead for mental health to identify opportunities for improving the customer journey, as well as recognising the need for further research to identify how officers and staff relate to vulnerable individuals in contact with the police service. Originality/value: Despite the limitations of the study, the findings have captured interesting data from a range of professionals working in one police custody suite, and therefore it presents a holistic overview of some key issues around mental health, vulnerability and safeguarding within the context of police custody. (Edited publisher abstract)
Appropriate adults: protecting the rights and welfare of vulnerable adults in custody
- Authors:
- JESSIMAN Tricia, CAMERON Ailsa
- Publisher:
- University of Bristol. School for Policy Studies
- Publication year:
- 2017
- Pagination:
- 2
- Place of publication:
- Bristol
This briefing reports on research to examine the role for adult social services in the provision of Appropriate Adult (AA) services across England, which safeguard the rights and welfare of vulnerable people in custody, including any young person aged 10-17. It also aimed to map different models of provision and identify what an ‘effective’ AA service would look like. The researchers used online surveys, and undertook four case studies in local authorities where stakeholders from adult social services, AA services, and police were interviewed. Two focus groups were also held with service users. It found that there is no standard model of funding for Appropriate Adult services for vulnerable adults and provision is often inadequate. It also found little evidence of service user involvement in Appropriate Adult provision. The briefing highlights implications for policy. (Edited publisher abstract)
Referrals to the police of vulnerable adult abuse
- Author:
- FARQUHARSON Jackie Ann
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Adult Protection, 18(2), 2016, pp.119-127.
- Publisher:
- Emerald
Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to examine the outcome of referrals made to one police force in England by three local authorities between March 2010 and April 2011, in order to identify and understand the barriers to prosecuting suspects of abuse or harm against vulnerable adults, and improve inter-agency co-operation. Design/methodology/approach: All referrals to this police force are given a crime number when they are recorded on the Criminal Justice System database together with a vulnerable adult flag and a status code which indicates the outcome following a police investigation. A search of the database using the vulnerable adult flag identifies the total number of referrals and outcomes for the selected period. This can then be imported into a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet to allow further analysis to take place. Findings: Over 87 per cent of all referrals of alleged abuse to vulnerable adults made to this police force did not establish that a crime had been committed. Of those that did only 1 per cent resulted in either a caution or court proceedings. Research limitations/implications: This is a small sample from one, predominantly rural, police force. Originality/value: The research contributes to a greater knowledge of the outcomes of adult safeguarding referrals made, primarily, by local authorities to the police and how police disclosures, on Disclosure and Barring Service checks, are being used as a means of providing employers of regulated activities with information on individuals who have been suspected of abusing vulnerable adults.
Policing domestic abuse
- Author:
- GREAT BRITAIN. Houses of Parliament. Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology
- Publisher:
- Great Britain. Houses of Parliament. Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology
- Publication year:
- 2015
- Pagination:
- 5
- Place of publication:
- London
This Postnote examines the prevalence and nature of domestic abuse and the policing response. It looks at how the response could be informed by research about the effectiveness of current and alternative approaches, and the possible benefits for victims, their families and offenders. The paper describes current police practices, including: approaches to assessing risk in DA incidents; after the risk assessment; and domestic violence disclosure scheme. The alternative approaches examined include: victim-focused approaches; offender-focused approaches; restorative justice (RJ); and updated DA training for police. (Edited publisher abstract)