Stanley W Booth M.B.E. NIAAS Scheme Manager

IASW/NIASW Adult Mental Health Social Work

Conference‘Human rights and mental health in a family

context the challenge for social workers’

MindWise is a leadingmental health charity with 35 service across NI In 15 venuestouching upon 1500 lives per day

Is mission statement ;-

TRANSFORMING LIVES ANDDEVELOPING NEW VISIONS FOR MENTAL HEALTH BY CHALLENGING STIGMA AND DISCRIMINATION, AND PROVIDING QUALITY SERVICES AND SUPPORT.

Learn more at www.mindwisenv.org

MindWise Services

Community Resource Centres

Belfast-Ballyclare-Banbridge-Downpatrick-Lurgan-Newry- Portadown

Advocacy Support Services

Community Bridge Builder Support Services

Volunteer Support Services

Community Support Services

The Northern Ireland Appropriate Adult service

Quotes;- One of the strongest qualities I have found is MindWise’s ability to

operate at a local level free from the constraints that often prevent statutory bodies from implementing developments as quickly as they would like. (A Commissioner)

Six various housing services

The Northern Ireland Appropriate Adult Schemeis a member of The National Appropriate Adult Network

We support people in Police custody who are vulnerable

PROTOCOL BETWEEN THE POLICE SERVICE OF NORTHERN IRELAND (PSNI), MINDWISE, AND HEALTH AND SOCIAL CARE TRUSTS

FOR THE OPERATION OFTHE NORTHERN IRELAND APPROPRIATE ADULT

SCHEME (NIAAS)

Stage 1

IDENTIFYING IF AA NEEDED

Stage 2

ENGAGING MINDWISE

Stage 3

ATTENDING CUSTODY SUITE

Stage 4

RECORDING DETAILS/

FOLLOW-UP

NIAAS PROCESS

Detainee booked in & C. Officer Risk Assessment

JuvenileAdult with mental illness / mentally

vunerable

Person with care issues –

C. Officer to contact S. Services if

necessary

Detainee ß àC. Officer

INFO SHARED / GAINED

No – NFA No – NFAYes – AA Needed

Is parent / guardian / S. Services willing &

available?

Circumstances of arrest Personal details Any health issues Read/write Any welfare issues Alcohol/drugs issues S.75 issues

Yes - NFANo – C. Officer contacts NIAAS

Switchboard

C. OfficerSwitchboard

Switchboard Operator calls AA on rota

AA calls C. Officer AA ß à C Officer

C. Officer contact number Station Case number (NICHE)

Ref NIAAS Reporting Form “Traffic Lights” H/M/L Mechanism

AA attends Station re:

(i) Witness detainee (e.g. if not fit for interview)(ii) Pre-Interview chat(iii) Supports during Interview / Fingerprints / DNA / VIPER – if VIPER postponed, ID Time / station & then C. Officer will arrange

C. Officer ß à AA ß à Detainee

Forms AA1 & AA2 & Custody record Role (or not) of AA Clarify if issues understood

AA records Hardcopy of

advice / support

C. Officer does pre-release assessment taking on board AA

proposals

Detainee released / Detained overnight

Any S. Service et al issues

AA completes IT record [PROTECT] & submits hardcopy record to HQ

AA à MINDWISE

HQ compile data / monitor / take action where necessary

Ref NIAAS Reporting Form

KEY

AA Appropriate Adult C. Officer Custody Officer NFA No Further Action NIAAS Northern Ireland Appropriate Adult Scheme S. Services Social Services

When it goes wrong- Mitrice Richardson

• A 24-year-old woman who was arrested on September 17, 2009, in Malibu, California, after she was reportedly intoxicated and unable to pay her $89 bill at a local restaurant.

• Her car was impounded after officers found marijuana.

• She was released from the Agoura Hills Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department just a few hours later and vanished.

• In the months that followed, Richardson's family and friends were involved in a search.

• Family members were critical of the L.A. County Sheriff's Department for releasing Richardson in the middle of the night. They also questioned whether Richardson

• “should have been held for a mental health evaluation after she acted bizarrely at the restaurant.“

• Richardson's remains were discovered in Malibu Canyon on August 9, 2010.

Safeguarding juveniles under 18 years and mentally vulnerable people of any age in police custody, by supporting them and considering their mental health, human rights and general welfare.

HOW ? by ensuring Police comply with legislation The Police & Criminal Evidence (NI) Order

1989/2009 (PACE) and the code of practice on how to deal with

detained people

In year 2 NIAAS team responded to 1392 requests across 17 police custody suites,365 days a year, between 8am-11pm, with an overnight call out available 11pm-8am for exceptional circumstances.Since launch June 2009 we have accompanied 3200 people.

What we discovered

During this reporting period 808 people were identified as vulnerable, falling within one of the categories listed below.

This equates to 62 % of all people supported, including young people who were primarily recorded as vulnerable by virtue of age but who further exhibited mental health concerns.

0

50

100

150

200

250

300

350

400

28

134108

349

34

139

16

Research suggests 64% of sentenced prisoners have personality disorders, with this rising to 78% for remand prisoners .

So the appropriate Adult encounters many issues in the Police custody environment.

N. Ireland over 20% of children under 18 years suffer significant mental health problems.

Young people in custody 46%- 81 % found to have mental health problems .

Woodland Young Offenders Centre-A Criminal justice report found 30 young people examined ;- 17 had self harmed, 8 had attempted suicide at least once,8 were on child protection registed,14 had educational needed (these overlapped each other )

Personality disorders are also identified

Avoidant

Dependant

Passive aggressive

Schizotypal

Schizoid

Antisocial

Borderline

Narcissistic

Histrionic

Paranoid

Depressive

Obsessive Compulsive

12 Personality Disorders affecting the detained persons perceptions.

A mentally-ill man who spent 27 years in jail for a murder he did not commit has been finally freed. 57-year-old Sean Hodgson who suffers from a personality disorder, was jailed for life in 1982 after being convicted of murdering Teresa de Simone, a 22-year-old clerk who worked part-time behind the bar in the Tom Tackle pub in Southampton. Her body was found in her Ford Escort car on December 5 1979. She had been raped and strangled

The court heard that Hodgson, hadmade several confessions but was a compulsive liar who had also admitted to two murders which had never taken place.

Social workers also fulfil this role. Why?

Corporate Parent ( Looked after children )

Under Article 18 of the Children (NI) Order 1995, each Trust has a general duty to safeguard and promote the welfare of children in need within its area. In doing so, Trusts and their staff have a legal and ethical duty to provide looked after children with the kind of support that any good parent would give to their children.

NIAAS now train Social workers in the Appropriate Adult role to

assist them when they are required by law to act for a child in care etc.

Advise the person being questioned, such as the need for a SolicitorFacilitate communication between Police and the detained person Ensure person understands his/her rightsObserve whether or not the interview is being conducted properly Present when searches are taking place and consent is givenPresent when fingerprints, photographs, and samples are taken Present during identification procedures Present when and if the person is being chargedConfirm person understands what will happen next.

The role of an Appropriate Adult

Vulnerabilities encountered by staff

A range of mental health conditions,Autism spectrum disorder,

Personality disorders,Bi-polar disorder,

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder Schizophrenia

A learning disabilities / difficulties Communication difficulties

Self-harming behaviourEating disorder or abuse of alcohol & drugs

All the above can be part of a "dual /multiple diagnosis” creating complex needs.

TrainingStaff are accredited

and hold a OCN Appropriate Adult Certificate to National Standards.

The National Appropriate Adult Network (NAAN)

Staff have also trained in a range of disciplines relating to the role of Appropriate Adult.

Safeguards -what if ?

NO Tapes NO Solicitor......... NO Appropriate Adult....

any concerns ?

Lets try a sample exercise, if I was the Appropriate Adult ?

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Scenario Its Monday morning at 8.45 am and the call centre has received 4 calls, from 4 different police station mile apart all case are pending. You are the only person available;-

How would you prioritise these four cases?

Tom is 17 and arrested for car theft last night at 3am,he is juvenile .His mother won’t attend the station ‘she’s had enough’. His father is in prison. Tom has a long criminal record. The custody sergeant tells you Tom is covered in cut marks and he has a history of self harm. Jill is 27 years old and has is being held on suspicion of aiding and abetting murder, as part of a major investigation. The Police Sergeant advises you Jill is giggling and finds the whole thing funny; she is flirting with the officers at the station. In her property she has 3 copies of the same Robbie Williams album receipts show she purchased tall three ,she keeps asking for her mobile phone to check if the party is still on tomorrow night.

James is a 35 year old man who fought with Police after ‘stabbing his television set’ because it shouted at him. He has a diagnosis of schizophrenia, but his medication ran out on Thursday he has been drinking over the weekend. Police now wish to interview him for assault on Police.

Paul is 14 years old and has Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) he is suspected of indecent assault on a girl aged 13 years (his girlfriend as far as he’s concerned). His mom and dad are in London right now and Police need to interview him today.

Questions and Discussion.

Thank you