Implications of DoLs? And Power of Attorney

[Bibbysmum]

HiThe social worker has decided that my daughter needs a Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) assessment, but then went on annual leave for five weeks, so we’re waiting for her return.

I don’t know much about DoLS—is this something I should be concerned about, or is it a good thing?

I recently gained Power of Attorney (POA) for my daughter, though the social worker was against it for some reason, and I’m not sure why. At the moment, my POA for care and welfare is not being questioned, although the care provider has not acknowledged it or included it in her care plan.

However, my financial POA is being challenged. They claim it’s not legal because my daughter was recently assessed under the Mental Capacity Act (MCA) and found to lack capacity to manage her finances (which was no surprise). I’ve explained that my POA is legally valid and that capacity is decision-specific—just because she can’t do basic maths doesn’t mean she lacked capacity to sign a form allowing me to manage her finances.

When the social worker returns, we’ll see what she says, but I intend to keep my POA.

[Bluey203]

Hi, my son had a DoLS, he lives at home with his family, it was put in place because we have to keep all doors and windows locked for his safety, as he would wander at any opportunity and has no understanding of danger or traffic sense.

[Bookbaby6851]

A Deprivation of Liberty is a court of order. Its usually put in place when someone lacks mental capacity and is for safe guarding. It's a long process and will involve social service and your self and daughter.

A power of attorney is also a legal process for financial and or health and welfare. When you're appointed as A Deputy for the Court of Protection you're given a Court Order which you can show to anyone who needs proof you have Power Of Attorney.

[Balamorym in reply to Bookbaby6851]

Power of Attorney and Deputyship are 2 different things Deputyship is for people who don't have capacity to consent to power of attorney. POA doesn't need a court order because the person has the capacity to consent to it. It is usually done through SS or GP and is a simpler process than Deputyship.

[Steve__]

Good luck.

I found a lawyer locally who would chat over the details of what was and was not legal in this kind of area for about an hour for an affordable sum. Maybe that would clarify?

[Balamorym]

Regarding POA, as long as your daughter has capacity to understand that you are managing her finances and she can communicate that she is happy for you to do so that is fine. Who did the mental capacity assessment? The social worker might want to do their own assessment to confirm the above. These protections are in place to prevent people being taken advantage of financially. It may be the case that the social worker is incorrectly applying the law, in which case you can go through their formal complaints procedure.

[SpeedyH]

Hi there. You are correct - and it is surprising how many carers, providers and social care professionals don't understand the concept of Capacity in terms of the MCA. The test of capacity with regards to POA is purely whether the person understands what a POA is, what the implications of setting one up are, and if they want one and who they want to be their attorneys. This can be ascertained using simple language, it doesn't have to be legalese. Whether they would be able to understand stocks and shares, or know how the kidneys work, is irrelevant as capacity is decision-specific at the time the decision has to be made.

[Bibbysmum in reply to SpeedyH]

Thank you for understanding my question. And thanks for confirming my thoughts. I have a huge problem at the moment with the care provider and Social workers. They have decided I am the enemy and have zero evidence. Nevertheless they have raised a safeguarding enquiry about me saying I don't have my daughters best interests at heart. It's laughable. They say I forced my daughter to sign the paperwork and therefore, they say, my power of attorney is not legal!

I'm just going to sit and observe and really not do a lot whilst I see exactly what they think they can do about it.

They call themselves professional, what a joke!

[Gallivanter25 in reply to Bibbysmum]

I'm so sorry to hear about the problems the care provider and Social workers are causing you. They have subjected my mum to similar treatment in the past regarding her role as my brother's appointee. They've had their beady eye on my brothers Appointeeship for as long as I can remember and never cease to ' remind' my mum of the benefits of a ' corporate Appointee', a mechanism through which they could in theory charge my brother a weekly charge for acting as his appointee. They really are despicable aren't they? They seem to get immense satisfaction from making service users and their families lives a complete and utter misery. I've never quite understood why Social Services play such a huge role in putting together care packages and assessing care needs because from where I'm sitting they don't have the skills or knowledge needed to understand those with Learning disabilities. They're not Psychologists, medical professionals or LD specialists, so I personally find their involvement to be highly unwelcome and irritating. I hope you have a good support network Bibbysmum and you certainly don't deserve to be treated in such a horrific and appalling manner.