- Latest available (Revised)
- Original (As made)
The Mental Health (Northern Ireland) Order 1986, Section 18 is up to date with all changes known to be in force on or before 19 September 2024. There are changes that may be brought into force at a future date. Changes that have been made appear in the content and are referenced with annotations.
Revised legislation carried on this site may not be fully up to date. Changes and effects are recorded by our editorial team in lists which can be found in the ‘Changes to Legislation’ area. Where those effects have yet to be applied to the text of the legislation by the editorial team they are also listed alongside the legislation in the affected provisions. Use the ‘more’ link to open the changes and effects relevant to the provision you are viewing.
Whole provisions yet to be inserted into this Order (including any effects on those provisions):
18.—(1) A patient who has attained the age of 16 years may be received into guardianship, for the period allowed by the following provisions of this Part, in pursuance of an application (in this Order referred to as “a guardianship application”) made in accordance with this Article.
(2) A guardianship application may be made in respect of a patient on the grounds that—
(a)he is suffering from mental illness or severe mental handicap of a nature or degree which warrants his reception into guardianship under this Article; and
(b)it is necessary in the interests of the welfare of the patient that he should be so received.
(3) A guardianship application shall be founded on and accompanied by two medical recommendations and a recommendation by an approved social worker and—
(a)each medical recommendation shall be given in accordance with Article 20 by a medical practitioner and shall include—
(i)a statement that, in his opinion, the ground set out in paragraph (2)(a) applies in relation to the patient; and
(ii)such particulars as may be prescribed of the grounds for that opinion;
(b)the recommendation by the approved social worker shall be in the prescribed form and shall include—
(i)a statement that, in his opinion, the ground set out in paragraph (2)(b) applies in relation to the patient;
(ii)the reasons for that opinion; and
(iii)a statement as to whether he is related to the patient and of any pecuniary interest that he may have in the reception of the patient into guardianship.
(4) A guardianship application shall—
(a)be made in the prescribed form; and
(b)be forwarded to the responsible[F1 authority].
(5) The person named as guardian in a guardianship application may be either the responsible[F1 authority] or, subject to paragraph (6), any other person (including the applicant himself).
(6) A guardianship application in which a person other than the responsible[F1 authority] is named as guardian—
(a)shall be accompanied by a statement in writing by that person that he is willing to act as guardian; and
(b)shall be of no effect unless it is accepted on behalf of that person by the responsible[F1 authority].
(7) A guardianship application and any medical recommendation given for the purposes of such an application may describe the patient as suffering from mental illness or severe mental handicap or in both those ways, but the application shall not be of any effect unless each of the medical recommendations describes the patient as suffering from the same form of mental disorder, whether or not either describes the patient as also suffering from another form.
The Whole Order you have selected contains over 200 provisions and might take some time to download. You may also experience some issues with your browser, such as an alert box that a script is taking a long time to run.
Would you like to continue?
The Whole Order you have selected contains over 200 provisions and might take some time to download.
Would you like to continue?
The Whole Order you have selected contains over 200 provisions and might take some time to download. You may also experience some issues with your browser, such as an alert box that a script is taking a long time to run.
Would you like to continue?
Latest Available (revised):The latest available updated version of the legislation incorporating changes made by subsequent legislation and applied by our editorial team. Changes we have not yet applied to the text, can be found in the ‘Changes to Legislation’ area.
Original (As Enacted or Made): The original version of the legislation as it stood when it was enacted or made. No changes have been applied to the text.
Geographical Extent: Indicates the geographical area that this provision applies to. For further information see ‘Frequently Asked Questions’.
Show Timeline of Changes: See how this legislation has or could change over time. Turning this feature on will show extra navigation options to go to these specific points in time. Return to the latest available version by using the controls above in the What Version box.
Access essential accompanying documents and information for this legislation item from this tab. Dependent on the legislation item being viewed this may include:
This timeline shows the different points in time where a change occurred. The dates will coincide with the earliest date on which the change (e.g an insertion, a repeal or a substitution) that was applied came into force. The first date in the timeline will usually be the earliest date when the provision came into force. In some cases the first date is 01/02/1991 (or for Northern Ireland legislation 01/01/2006). This date is our basedate. No versions before this date are available. For further information see the Editorial Practice Guide and Glossary under Help.
Use this menu to access essential accompanying documents and information for this legislation item. Dependent on the legislation item being viewed this may include:
Click 'View More' or select 'More Resources' tab for additional information including: