Mental Health Acts

the Acts of Parliament governing the care of the mentally disordered. The Mental Health Act 1959 provided the framework for England and Wales; similar Acts in 1960 and 1961 provided for Scotland and Northern Ireland. They abolished the old system of certification and established a legal framework for voluntary treatment of the mentally ill on the same basis as other patients. The Act also provides for compulsory admission when the mentally disordered put themselves or other people into danger. It also enjoined local authorities to provide for the community treatment of mental disorder. The Mental Health (Amendment) Act of 1982 made further provisions for the protection of the civil rights of patients, the restriction of grounds for their detention and compulsory treatment, and for a commission to regulate aspects of the practice of psychiatry (see Mental Health Act Commission). The provisions of the 1959 and 1982 Acts are now codified in a single statute, the Mental Health Act 1983, with amendments in 1996 .