Figures reveal number of people deprived of their liberty across the UK

More 124,000 people were detained in the UK on any given day in 2015-16, including more than 2,000 in Scotland in cases of emergency detention a new report has found.

The National Preventive Mechanism (NPM) report marks the first time such figures have been published.

According to the NPM, the figure is likely to be much higher than 124,000 as it was unable to include data for a number of settings.

The NPM is responsible for the independent monitoring of all places of detention throughout the UK, including secure mental health facilities, children’s secure accommodation, police custody, and prisons.

The Mental Welfare Commission for Scotland is one of 20 independent organisations that make up the NPM, and is particularly interested in people who have mental ill health and need to be detained for treatment.

It found that there were 2,193 episodes of emergency detention (up to 72 hours) which took place in Scotland in 2015-16 under the Mental Health (Scotland) Act 2015.

These figures are published with the NPM’s seventh annual report, which gives an overview of its work monitoring detention across the whole of the UK.

In 2015-16 the commission undertook visits to all intensive psychiatric care units and inpatient learning disability units in Scotland, where commission staff members looked at rights and restrictions. This resulted in two national reports, and the commission now expects all psychiatric units where seclusion may be used to have seclusion policies in place.

The commission also collaborated with other NPM members in its aim to prevent the ill treatment of people in detention – in September 2015, the commission worked with the Scottish Human Rights Commission to produce a report on human rights in mental health care in Scotland.

Colin McKay, chief executive, Mental Welfare Commission, said: “The commission has a specific interest in people who are very unwell and need to be detained in order to get treatment.

“Part of our mission is to protect the human rights of people with mental health issues, many of whom are treated in mental health facilities against their will. We are therefore pleased to see such scrutiny, and welcome the publication of the NPM’s annual report.”