The Detention of Vulnerable People – Father Wins Landmark Case

16 September 2011

A father recently won his battle against Hillingdon Council to be allowed to care for his son at home, and received a public apology from the director of social care for the Council’s errors of judgment.

In December 2009, 21-year-old Steven Neary, who is autistic, was booked into a ‘positive behaviour unit’ in Uxbridge, West London, for a few days of respite care whilst his father, Mark Neary, was recovering from a bout of flu.
Staff at the unit raised concerns about Steven’s behaviour and repeatedly extended his stay. Mr Neary argued that his son’s behaviour could be explained by the disruption caused by being in unfamiliar surroundings and would improve once he returned home. However, following an incident in April 2010, when Steven was allowed outside the unit and snatched the glasses of a passer-by, Hillingdon Council sought authorisation to deprive Steven of his liberty.

Mr Neary was led to believe that if he removed Steven from the unit, his son’s home support package would be withdrawn. When he discovered that, against his wishes, the Council intended to move Steven under section to a permanent facility, Mr Neary decided to pursue a public campaign to draw attention to his son’s plight and to challenge the Council’s decision.

As early as February 2010, staff at Hillingdon Council had discussed the need for the dispute to be settled by the Court of Protection, but an application to the Court was not made until October of that year. During this time, Steven made several attempts to escape from the unit.

In December 2010, the Court of Protection granted an interim order ruling that Steven should be allowed to return home.

The Court has now ruled that Hillingdon Council acted unlawfully in detaining Steven. Its procedures had been wholly inadequate, with no balanced assessment as to whether he was in the right place. In the circumstances, keeping Steven away from home was a breach of his human rights.

Mr Justice Peter Jackson praised Mr Neary for his perseverance and warned councils not to misuse the powers granted to them under the Mental Capacity Act 2005 as ‘a means of getting their own way’.

Normally, cases involving those who do not have the capacity to manage their own affairs are held in private. However, following an application to the Court from various newspapers, setting out why journalists should be allowed to attend the hearing and report on the case in the interest of fair and open justice, the Court of Protection agreed that there was a ‘genuine public interest in the work of this court being understood’. 

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