Section 135 Warrants: Police Entry Powers for Mental Health Assessment

Section 135 warrants are used in specific circumstances:

• Section 135(1): someone reasonably believed to have a mental disorder needs to be assessed; they cannot be safely assessed in the community; access to them or their consent to assessment cannot be obtained.
• Section 135(2): a person already liable to detention under the MHA (e.g. on s.3 detention, CTO recall, conditional discharge) has absconded; the warrant authorises police to retake them.

Common scenarios:

• Someone with severe psychiatric symptoms refusing to open the door to mental health crisis team.
• Concerns about welfare from family or carers who cannot get a response.
• An assessment under section 2 (28-day assessment) cannot be completed because the person will not let the team in.
• A person on CTO has been recalled but has not returned to hospital.

The application is made by an AMHP (or in some cases by another person to court). The court considers whether grounds for the warrant are met and grants it with specific terms about timing and location.

Execution:

1. Police officer(s) attend with an AMHP and a registered medical practitioner.
2. Knock and announce — the warrant is shown if requested.
3. If access refused, police may use reasonable force to enter.
4. The person is taken to a place of safety — preferably hospital, sometimes a designated suitable facility, rarely a police station.
5. At the place of safety, the assessment occurs — by the AMHP and at least one doctor (two for some sections).
6. The assessment determines the next step: discharge, voluntary informal admission, or detention under s.2, s.3, or s.4.

The warrant is time-limited: typically valid for 7 days; the person can be detained at the place of safety for up to 24 hours (extendable to 36 hours in exceptional circumstances under s.136B).

The person has:

• The right to free legal advice — duty solicitor at police stations; hospital mental-health-legal-aid solicitors at hospitals.
• The right to an Independent Mental Health Advocate (IMHA) — the IMHA is independent of the hospital and can advise on rights, attend assessments, and challenge decisions. The Code of Practice requires IMHA access to be offered.
• The right to have a relative or friend informed of their detention and location (the Mental Health Act Code of Practice, Chapter 16).
• The right to refuse most treatment. Treatment without consent can only be given under specific MHA provisions; at the s.135 stage, the person has not yet been detained under treatment sections.
• The right to be assessed promptly — the AMHP and doctor must complete assessment within the 24/36 hour period.

The Policing and Crime Act 2017 amended the MHA to restrict police station use. Since December 2017:

• A police station can only be used as a place of safety where the person's behaviour poses a risk of serious injury or death that cannot be managed in a healthcare setting.
• For under-18s: a police station can NEVER be used as a place of safety.
• The decision must be reviewed by a senior officer (Inspector or above).
• Records must be kept showing why a police station was used.

Most placements should be at hospital — a designated section 136 suite, a psychiatric assessment unit, or another suitable healthcare facility. Police station use has dropped from over 6,000 detentions per year pre-2017 to under 1,000 by 2024.

If a police station is wrongly used — particularly for a child or where the criteria are not met — complaints can be made to the force and to the IOPC. The Mental Health Act Code of Practice (especially Chapter 16) provides the procedural standards.

The two main "place of safety" provisions:

• Section 135: warrant from the Magistrates' Court. Used to gain entry to private premises. Pre-planned (warrant takes some time to obtain).
• Section 136: police power without warrant. Used in public places (street, shop, park, etc.) where police encounter a person who appears to have a mental disorder and to be in immediate need of care or control. No warrant; takes effect immediately.

Both authorise a maximum of 24 hours (extendable to 36) detention at a place of safety. The same rights to legal advice, IMHA, and informing relatives apply.

Practical difference: s.136 is used in real-time response (police called to a public place); s.135 is used in planned response (AMHP wants to assess someone at their home but cannot get access).

If you believe a s.135 warrant was misused:

• Complaint to the police — about the manner of execution, force used, whether the person was treated with dignity. Local force PSD; serious complaints to the IOPC.
• Complaint to the AMHP's council — about the AMHP's decision to apply or assessment conduct.
• Complaint to the NHS Trust — about clinical aspects of the assessment.
• Mental Health Tribunal — if detained under s.2 or s.3 following the s.135 warrant, an immediate tribunal appeal can challenge ongoing detention.
• Judicial review — for unlawful warrants or systemic misuse. Rare in practice.
• Civil claim for false imprisonment — if the warrant was procedurally defective or the person was held beyond statutory limits.