Legislation – Mental Health Act 2025
Changes to legislation:
There are currently no known outstanding effects for the Mental Health Act 2025, Section 3.
Changes to Legislation
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Autism and learning disability
3Application of the Mental Health Act 1983: autism and learning disability
(1)
The Mental Health Act 1983 is amended as follows.
(2)
In section 1 (application of Act: “mental disorder”)—
(a)
““autism” means a lifelong developmental disorder of the mind that affects how people perceive, communicate and interact with others;”;
““learning disability” means a state of arrested or incomplete development of the mind which includes significant impairment of intelligence;”;
““psychiatric disorder” means mental disorder other than autism or learning disability;”;
(b)
“(2A)
For the purposes of this Act, a person’s learning disability has “serious behavioural consequences” if it is associated with abnormally aggressive or seriously irresponsible conduct by the person.”;
(c)
omit subsection (4).
(3)
““autism” has the meaning given in section 1;”;
““learning disability” has the meaning given in section 1;”;
““psychiatric disorder” has the meaning given in section 1;”;
““serious behavioural consequences”, in relation to a person’s learning disability, is to be read in accordance with section 1(2A);”.
(4)
Schedule 1 amends the Mental Health Act 1983 to—
(a)
(b)
make related changes in relation to the application of that Act to autism and learning disability.