Currently the Mental Health Act focuses mainly on compulsory treatment. It does not give any right to receive treatment for people who feel they need support.
Many people find that they are refused help when they ask for it.
The Government s Expert Committee recommended that there should be a right to an assessment, and a duty to keep a register of unmet need. Mind would welcome this as a first step, but we would like to see the Government go further and give the right to receive the treatment which the assessment says is necessary. This is not about forcing people to take treatment. It is about providing people with the support they feel they need. See our leaflet on assessment and treatment which gives more information on what Mind wants to see in the Act.