Right Care Right Person
A national approach
Right Care Right Person is a national approach, which ensures members of the community secure the necessary help from the most appropriate agency following the signing of a National Partnership Agreement on Wednesday 26 July 2023.
Here in Dorset we have adopted a whole-system partnership approach to Right Care Right Person that sees Dorset Police working with partners, including local authorities, NHS trusts and mental health agencies to ensure that people receive the right support from the right organisation at the earliest opportunity.
Right Care Right Person was introduced in four phases in Dorset, as agreed by the Integrated Care Partnership.
Phase 1 was launched in April 2024 and relates to police officers not being routinely replied upon to conduct welfare checks when another agency may be best placed to address the needs of the individual. When people are in mental health crisis, they need timely access to support that is compassionate and meets their needs. While there will always be cases where the police need to be involved in responding to someone in mental health crisis due to an immediate risk to life or where a crime is in progress, we know that the attendance of the police may add to a person’s distress or lead to a feeling of embarrassment, giving the false impression they have committed a crime.
Phase 2 launched in July 2024 to ensure that police officers are not routinely called to locate patients who leave unexpectedly from the A&E department of acute hospitals or mental health establishments and are again located by the right agency.
November 2024 saw the go live of the third phase, which relates to those calls relating to Section 136 of the Mental Health Act and voluntary mental health patients and aims to improve the handover times at mental health crisis centres to minimise the impact on the patient.
In January 2025 we launched the fourth and final phase of the initiative to ensure that the transportation of physical and mental health patients is not carried out by the police, unless in exceptional circumstances.
Every call to a police control room is assessed using the national College of Policing RCRP decision making toolkit as this ensures Dorset Police is supporting individuals and partner agencies appropriately and improving the response to core policing responsibilities, such as preventing and detecting crime.
Accessing support
- If you, a friend or loved one requires mental health support you can access a range of services from Dorset Healthcare as part of Access Mental Health Dorset.
- Connection – a 24/7 helpline open to all ages. Dorset residents or people visiting Dorset can call 0800 652 0190 or NHS 111 for free.
- The Retreat – open to anyone aged 18 or above, providing a safe space to seek face-to-face help and support.
- Community Front Rooms – open to anyone aged 18 or above, providing a welcoming, safe space where you can discuss problems and work towards possible solutions at locations in Bridport, Shaftesbury, Weymouth and Wareham.
Anyone concerned about the immediate safety of a loved one should continue to call Dorset Police on 999 or 101.