Met Police confirms when it will stop attending most mental health calls

Commenting in response Caroline Pidgeon AM said: “The revelations in yesterday’s report were truly abhorrent and I am grateful for the work Baroness Casey has done to shine a light on the institutional problems within the Met. “To learn several hundred officers are potentially facing dismissal really highlights just how widespread the rot within the force has become and pours cold water on the notion by some that this is only about a ‘few bad apples’.
The Met Police has raised its threshold for sending officers to mental health-related incidents. Credit: PA

The Metropolitan Police has confirmed when it will stop attending most mental health calls as the force aims to focus more of its resources on tackling crime.

From October 31, the Met will introduce a "clear-threshold", meaning officers will only attended an incident to investigate a crime, or where there is a clear risk to life or a risk of serious harm.

The date was confirmed in a letter to staff after the force and healthcare bosses reached an agreement.

Signed by Met commissioner Sir Mark Rowley, regional medical director of NHS England Chris Streather, and other London healthcare bosses, it said that data explains why a change is needed.

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Metropolitan Police commissioner Sir Mark Rowley. Credit: Aaron Chown/PA

“We know that 78% of people detained under section 136 will go on to be discharged home following assessment, suggesting mental health is being over-policed in London," it said.

“In practice, this means that police call handlers will receive a new prompt relating to welfare checks or when a patient goes absent from health partner inpatient care. “The prompt will ask call handlers to check that a police response is required. The first key milestone for the implementation programme is October 31 where the clear threshold for a police response will be introduced into Met call centres.”

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A spokesperson for the Met said the force's new "Right Care Right Person" operational model is to make sure "each call receives a response from the most appropriate agency", which "isn't always the police". “Currently police officers spend a significant amount of time dealing with health incidents which has an impact on the availability of our resources," they added.

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A spokesperson for NHS England in London said: “We continue to work closely with colleagues to develop a clear implementation plan for Right Care, Right Person which will be rolled out over the coming months and years. “Our priority across all partner agencies is to ensure that the mental health needs of all our communities are delivered in a measured, comprehensive and cohesive way to ensure the best experience and outcomes for people using mental health services in London.”

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Plans to cut police mental health callouts have previously been described as “dangerous”, with charity Mind warning that people could lose their lives as a result of the change.

Former Met superintendent Leroy Logan told ITV the force must work with other authorities and be part of the solution, rather than distance itself. Last month, the president-elect of the British Psychological Society, Dr Roman Raczka, said: “To withdraw police support within the next two years, at a time when mental health services are already stretched beyond capacity and under resourced after years of chronic underfunding, is simply dangerous.”