Reform or revolution? Mental health legislation and the development of community care

This chapter will explore the development of mental health legislation from the introduction of the 1983 MHA to the introduction of Community Treatment Orders (CTOs) in the reforms of 2007. The chapter ends with a brief discussion of the Wessely review of the MHA that was completed in 2018. Reform of mental health legislation reflects two potentially conflicting strands. One is the state’s power to incarcerate the “mad”, the other is the move to protect the civil rights of those who are subject to such legislation. The development of legislation reflects the broader pattern of community care as a policy. The initial optimism and progressive reforms of the early 1980s are overtaken by a more managerialist, pragmatic approach which focuses on risk and risk management