Basic Awareness of the Mental Health Act and Understanding Section 117 After Care

This full-day training offers an essential foundation in the Mental Health Act (MHA) and a comprehensive understanding of Section 117 aftercare arrangements.

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Duration: 6 Hours

Max Capacity: 8-20

Session Format: Classroom Based Learning

Course Overview

The course explains the statutory framework and practical application of the MHA, including assessment, detention, rights, advocacy, tribunals, and how aftercare planning works in practice.

Through interactive discussions and real-world scenarios, delegates will build confidence in legally compliant, person-centred support and decision-making across health and social care settings.

What’s Involved

Participants will engage in a mix of facilitated teaching, case studies, group exercises, and reflective learning designed to reinforce understanding of legal duties, multi-agency responsibilities, and effective aftercare planning.

This course is delivered in a classroom setting, providing opportunities for questions and discussion with expert trainers.

Who Is This Course For?

This course is ideal for professionals working in health, social care, housing and support services, including but not limited to:

Social workers and care coordinators
Mental health practitioners
Nurses and allied health professionals
Support staff and team leaders
Commissioners and service managers
Anyone requiring a practical understanding of the Mental Health Act and Section 117 aftercare arrangements

Learning Outcomes

Explain the purpose, scope, and guiding principles of the Mental Health Act, including how it seeks to balance individual rights, risk management, and the provision of care and treatment.

Describe what is meant by the terms “sectioned” and “detained”, and understand the legal authority and implications associated with detention under the Mental Health Act.

Understand the criteria for detention and the different types of sections, including informal and voluntary admission, involuntary detention, and the use of parental consent for children and young people.

Explain the Mental Health Act assessment process, including the statutory steps that must be followed when assessing whether an individual meets the criteria for detention.

Identify the professionals involved in a Mental Health Act assessment, and clearly describe the role, responsibilities, and decision-making authority of the Approved Mental Health Professional (AMHP).

Understand how detention under the Mental Health Act impacts an individual’s human rights, including the principles of least restrictive practice, proportionality, and procedural safeguards.

Explain the importance of advocacy for individuals detained under the Mental Health Act, including the role of Independent Mental Health Advocates (IMHAs) and how advocacy supports rights, participation, and informed decision-making.

Provide a clear overview of Mental Health Tribunals, including their purpose, who can apply, and how tribunal decisions can affect detention and aftercare arrangements.

Understand the purpose and application of Care (Education) and Treatment Reviews (C(E)TRs), including when they are required and how they support improved care planning.

Explain Section 117 aftercare arrangements, including eligibility, statutory responsibilities, funding duties, and the distinction between s117 aftercare and general health or social care services.

Identify the types of support that may constitute Section 117 aftercare, including accommodation, therapeutic interventions, social support, and community-based services.

Understand how Section 117 aftercare should be planned, reviewed, and coordinated, with an emphasis on joint working between health and local authority partners.

Explain when and how Section 117 aftercare can be lawfully ended, including who has the authority to make this decision and common risks associated with premature discharge.

Explore resolution and escalation frameworks within children’s, young people’s, and adult mental health services, including how disputes around care or funding should be addressed.

Apply learning to practical case scenarios, demonstrating improved confidence in recognising legal duties, appropriate pathways, and when to escalate or seek specialist advice.

Benefits of Completing This Course

Enhanced Legal Confidence

Understand key provisions of the Mental Health Act and Section 117 to practise with legal clarity and confidence.

Improved Decision-Making

Learn how to interpret and apply statutory duties to real situations, reducing risk and improving service user outcomes.

Better Multi-Agency Collaboration

Gain insights into roles and responsibilities across health, social care, and commissioning partners.

Effective Aftercare Planning

Develop skills to plan, review, and support lawful and person-centred aftercare arrangements.

Rights-Based Practice

Integrate human rights and advocacy principles into everyday work with detained individuals.

Career Development

Bolster professional capability, meeting organisational expectations for competence in MHA applications.

A Special Mention

"I wanted to say a huge thank you for the 2 day restraint training you provided. As a parent I found it so comforting and reassuring to be trained with my son’s new staff team. Hearing how much emphasis was placed on values really impressed me. As did the training which really looked at avoiding having to use restraint. The training was really able to be tailored to the individual needs of my son which was incredibly helpful for all his new staff who I believe came away with a really deep knowledge of his triggers and how to de-escalate him.

I would recommend it to any parent in the position of their young person moving into supported living. Not only was it a great way to start building relationships with his staff but it was incredibly reassuring to know that the care company are really invested in finding the right training which focuses on treating their service users as people and want staff with the right values working with him. I can’t thank you enough for letting me attend. I know that some trainers would find it difficult training parents along side staff because it could have the potential to alter the dynamics so I’m really delighted you allowed me the opportunity.

A huge thank you from a very reassured mum!"

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What our happy clients said

The trainer has been amazing, she understood we all had different learning styles and adapted everything she taught. She made me feel very at ease and welcome.
The trainer was brilliant, very knowledgeable and delivered the course in a very interactive manner.
Great course, the trainer delivered it with great knowledge, energy and enthusiasm.
The trainer was excellent and one of the best trainers I have had in the industry. The four days flew by and I really enjoyed the course.

Thank you.
Thank you very much, the training was fantastic! It was a really interesting and informative four days!
It was helpful that we had the opportunity to expand on the components of the course beyond the book, maximising the additional time, was really helpful. The trainer gave us the opportunity to engage with the ideas and relate them back to our own clients and activities.

This was useful to the end of helping us see how Timian could be infused with our work.
Since attending the Timian Train the Trainer course we have already implemented some of the worksheets - the post-incident debriefing guidance is now on our HR portal.

I am looking forward to enhancing our PBS plans with IRS models and using the crisis cycle to inform updates and improvements.
The course was excellent! Cath was engaging and made the content interesting- she related it to real life live experiences. This is a worthwhile course, I learnt a lot and can now take it to my place of work and support other with me new knowledge.
I thoroughly enjoyed the training and learnt a lot. It was delivered in an interactive way with lots of exercises and opportunities for learning.
I thoroughly enjoyed the course and am looking forward to be working within the Timian model of positive relationships.

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Empeiria Training is all about offering training that is unique and bespoke to your organisation and its needs. Backed by decades of experience, we offer a safe environment for face-to-face learning, with our specialism being working with people with learning disabilities.

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