Right Care Right Person
What is Right Care Right Person?
Right Care Right Person (RCRP) is a model designed to ensure that when there are concerns for a person’s welfare linked to mental health, medical or social care issues, the right person with the right skills, training and experience will respond.
In recent years, police officers have often been required to offer support to those who really require specialist medical or psychological care.
Under Right Care Right Person, our officers will no longer be taking on this responsibility when it is not appropriate to do so.
The care will now be provided by the agency that can best meet the individual’s needs.
Similar schemes have already been successfully adopted by forces in Humberside, Lincolnshire, Hampshire, and the Metropolitan Police.
What does this mean for us in Sussex?
The number of calls we attend obviously has a big impact on the availability of our resources, and sometimes we’re not even the right people to respond to such incidents.
Sussex Police receives an average of 57,500 calls a year for medical concerns with the majority being welfare checks, this accounts for a large majority of contact received.
We want to be clear that RCRP will not stop the police attending incidents where there is a threat to life. We have a duty to protect our communities and we will continue to do so.
Why are you reducing your involvement in responding to mental health incidents?
RCRP is about delivering the most appropriate care for anyone who needs it. Our officers will always act with care and compassion towards those who are suffering a mental health crisis, but they only receive limited training, and the skills and support vulnerable people may need are often not those of a police officer.
Furthermore, being dealt with by police can have a detrimental impact on vulnerable people, who can feel like they are being criminalised because of their mental health issues.
Working with our partners, we can make sure that our communities get the best possible care for their needs.
Currently our police officers spend a significant amount of time dealing with health incidents, which has an impact on our ability to respond to crime and policing related issues. We have a duty to prevent and investigate crime and to keep people safe and so with the support our colleagues in health and social care, RCRP will help us focus on core policing duties.
Does this mean officers will stop going to mental health incidents?
The implementation of RCRP will not stop us from continuing to perform our key role of keeping people safe, but to ensure the most appropriate agency with the correct training and experience in managing mental health issues responds to a person in crisis.
We want to reiterate that we are not stepping away from health-related incidents, as we still have a duty to protect our communities and will always attend incidents where there is a real and immediate threat to life or serious harm to an individual or others around them.
How will we know if an incident needs police or another agency?
A national toolkit has been developed by the National Police Chiefs’ Council and the College of Policing to support police forces in implementing RCRP.
Our call handlers are currently trained to deal with a wide range of calls and assess each one under THRIVE (Threat Harm Risk Investigation Vulnerability Engagement) to determine if a police response is required and if so, how that response should be prioritised.
RCRP specific guidance has been provided to our control room staff to support with their decision-making processes and training is being delivered to staff and officers in a public facing frontline role.
How will RCRP be rolled out?
We have been working with our partners in health and social care to make the necessary changes to service provisions to ensure vulnerable people are given appropriate care by the appropriate agency.
RCRP will be rolled out in a phased approach:
- Phase one - concern for welfare
- Phase two - walkout of healthcare facilities and AWOL from a mental health establishment
- Phase three – transportation
- Phase four - Section 136 of the Mental Health Act and voluntary mental health patients
Has RCRP been a success within other areas?
Humberside Police was the first force to implement RCRP and has reported a more collaborative, informed, and appropriate response to incidents involving a health or social care need.
As a result, the force saw average incidents per month reduce by 508 deployments – equating to 1,132 officer hours. This has allowed the force to reallocate saved resource to specialist teams such as missing persons.
How can I find out more?
The College of Policing, along with the National Police Chiefs’ Council have developed national guidance and toolkits which support police forces when implementing RCRP.
Signposting
If you feel like you can't cope and need help with your mental health, you can get same-day or next day help, (24 hours a day, 7 days a week) by:
- Calling NHS 111 and select the mental health option
- Calling the Samaritans on 116 123
- Texting the word SUSSEX to 85258
If you are worried about your mental health, you can also make an appointment with your GP who can talk to you and introduce you to the right mental health service for your needs.
To get treatment for symptoms of anxiety or depression, you can contact your local Talking Therapies service:
Other ways to get help with your mental health:
- Mental health services and support in Brighton & Hove
- Mental health services and support in East Sussex
- Mental health services and support in West Sussex
If you are concerned about an adult or child and need further advice, you can get help from the local authority where they live.
Details on helps and support available locally can be found by visiting the websites below:
For information on a wide range of local support services available in your area visit Safe:Space Sussex.