The Supreme Court's judgment on deprivation of liberty

You may be aware that the Supreme Court has recently issued a judgment which significantly changes the legal approach to determining whether a person is deprived of their liberty. The judgement can be seen here A Reference by the Attorney General for Northern Ireland of a devolution issue under paragraph 34 o….

We would encourage you to familiarise yourselves with the judgment and carefully consider the implications for your services and practice. Please see the following links for further information: CQC statement on the Supreme Court's judgment on deprivation of liberty - Care Quality Commission and 2026-UKSC-16-Summary-for-website.pdf.

We ask that you refer to this updated position when making any new referrals to the DoLS team.  In addition, as the change came into effect immediately from 2 June, please review any recent DoLS referrals you have made. You should consider whether, in light of this revised approach, any of these referrals may no longer be appropriate.

We hope this offers reassurance whilst we wait for additional National guidance to be disseminated.  At this stage we don’t have further information, but if you have a specific query, you can contact the MCA DoLS Duty Team at Dolforms@essex.gov.uk

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Domestic abuse campaign (over 70s) launched

On behalf of the Southend, Thurrock and Essex Domestic Abuse Board (SETDAB), Essex County Council (ECC) have launched – Look. Listen. Be aware – a countywide campaign that aims to raise awareness of domestic abuse in later life. The campaign will:

  • Raise awareness and by doing so, encourage people to seek support: Increase public awareness about domestic abuse among people aged 70+, the specific challenges they face and how to spot the signs. Explain the support available from COMPASS. Motivate those who support older people to contact COMPASS.
  • Educate: Provide information on recognising signs of abuse and on available resources from SETDAB to professionals - caregivers, health and social care providers, community organisations and local authorities - providing support to people aged 70+.

The campaign is aimed at:

  • community organisations and local authorities
  • domiciliary care and healthcare professionals
  • unpaid carers
  • family and friends
  • individuals aged 70+ who may be victims you can support this campaign by:
  • sharing and engaging with our Look. Listen. Be aware campaign social media posts
  • utilising and sharing the partner toolkit with partners, networks and colleagues
  • adapting the example content and assets provided in the partner toolkit for your own channels
  • advocating within your local communities
  • encouraging stakeholder engagement and amplification

We have produced a toolkit we hope you find useful. The ECC Look. Listen. Be aware campaign partner toolkit, digital and print campaign assets are available to download from this SharePoint link partner use. Please notify campaigns@essex.gov.uk to request access, if necessary.