Section 136 – Assessment of mental health – via police contact

1. Patient’s name

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

2. Place of safety

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You have been brought to this place of safety by a police officer because they are concerned that you may have a mental disorder and should be seen by a mental health professional.

You are being kept here under section 136 of the Mental Health Act 1983 so that you can be assessed to see if you need treatment.

You can be kept here (or in another place where you will be safe) for up to 24 hours so that you can be seen by a doctor and an approved mental health professional. A doctor can extend this for up to 12 hours if they are unable to complete assessment due to your clinical presentation.

An approved mental health professional is someone who has been specially trained to help decide whether people need to be kept in hospital.

If the doctor and the approved mental health professional agree that you need to remain in hospital, a second doctor may be asked to see you to confirm their decision.

During this time you must not leave unless you are told that you may. If you try to go, the staff can stop you, and if you leave you can be brought back.

If the doctors and the approved mental health professional have not seen you by the end of the 24 hours, and not extension has been made, you will be free to leave.

In your case the 24 hours end at:

Date………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Time……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

When the doctors and an approved mental health professional have seen you, they may say that you need to stay in hospital for longer. They will tell you why and for how long this is likely to be. You will be given another leaflet that explains what will happen.

If they decide that you do not have to stay, someone will talk to you about what other help you should have.

No. Even if you do not agree that you need to be in hospital, you cannot appeal against the decision to keep you here under section 136.

The hospital staff will tell you about any treatment, this will occur on admission if felt necessary not at the place of safety suite. You have the right to refuse any treatment you do not want. Only in special circumstances, which would be explained to you, can you be given treatment you do not agree to.

There is a Code of Practice that gives advice to the staff in the hospital about the Mental Health Act and treating people for mental disorder. The staff have to consider what the Code says when they take decisions about your care. You can ask to see a copy of the Code, if you want

You can talk to a staff member or use the contacts listed below. See other ways to give feedback

Your Voice
You can use this email to tell us what you think about your care. This can be good or bad. You can also ask us to tell you what happens after you send feedback.

Email: [email protected]

Comments and complaints
If something went wrong, please tell us. This will help us improve services.

Email: [email protected]
Telephone: 0191 245 6672
Write to: Complaints Department, Cumbria, Northumberland, Tyne and Wear NHS Foundation Trust, St Nicholas Hospital, Gosforth, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE3 3XT.

Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS)
PALS offer a free, confidential service. They can help if you are worried about your care. They support patients, families and carers.

PALS North of Tyne
(services in Newcastle, North Tyneside, Northumberland and North Cumbria)
Email: [email protected]
Telephone: 0800 032 0202

PALS South of Tyne
(services in Sunderland, Gateshead, South Tyneside and Lotus Ward, Middlesbrough)
Email: [email protected]
Telephone: 0800 328 4397

If there is anything you do not understand about your care and treatment, a member of staff will try to help you. Please ask a member of staff to explain if there is anything in this leaflet you do not understand or if you have other questions that this leaflet has not answered.

Please ask if you would like another copy of this leaflet for someone else.

You can get more information about this leaflet from the Patient Information Centre. This includes how the leaflet was made. We can provide this leaflet in other formats. These include Braille, audio, large print, Easy Read, British Sign Language, and other languages.

We welcome your feedback about this leaflet. You can email [email protected]

Published by the Patient Information Centre
2026 Copyright: Cumbria, Northumberland, Tyne and Wear NHS Foundation Trust

Ref: PIC/206/0526 May 2026 V7
Review date 2027

Website: www.cntw.nhs.uk – Telephone: 0191 246 6800

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