Your rights when detained under the Mental Health Act in England

These guides explain everything that patients detained in a mental health hospital must be told about their rights under the Human Rights Act and the Equality Act.

Where relevant, they also cover the rights of nearest relatives and patients staying in hospital on a voluntary basis.

The guides cover the forensic and civil sections of the Mental Health Act. For each section, there is a short introductory guide and a longer interactive guide.

The full guide includes information about:

• being detained in hospital
• staying in hospital
• leaving hospital
• complaints

There is also a word list where you can find definitions for some of the words used in the guide.