Friday 31 March 2017

Haters Gonna Hate

Haters Gonna Hate


As a team, we just wanted to say what a pleasure it was to meet the delegates at the Conference on Thursday.  We hope that some new relations have been developed and support gathered.

We did find that many who attended had not appreciated the Law Commissions recent report released March 2017, many did not even know such a report had been published and that changes had been recommended by the panel.

As you will appreciate Safeguarding and Mental Capacity can be a very emotional and thought provoking topic, so it was disappointing that a number of Adult Safeguarding colleagues felt they were unable to connect with the Conference and therefore chose to leave after lunch.

We had mixed feedback, some negative with constructive criticism which we can use to learn from and improve ourselves, we had some amazing feedback including feedback from visitors to the hotel who were discussing the conference with the delegates.

Again, though disappointingly a number of people felt that they needed to comment negatively upon the décor of the venue, something we had no control over. 

Additionally, we had feedback from a minority who felt that Eldergill (reference to District Judge Anselm Eldergill from the Court of Protection) did not understand Mental Capacity or COP procedures – one comment went as far as asking why was Anselm a speaker at a mental capacity conference.  I hope the writer of this comment appreciates that not just I but a vast array of people truly hope that District Judge Anselm Eldergill of the Court of Protection would perhaps know a little bit more about the process than your average person.

This in turn also seemed to produce negative feedback upon Dave Sheppard a Mental Capacity Act Lawyer where one comment stated that they were Deputy Adult Safeguarding Lead and they felt Mr Sheppard was inconsistent and had not research his topic.

Though disappointing in some ways negative feedback only makes us stronger and we can learn from the mistakes we make. 

Overall the entire day was a huge success with the majority of the delegates appreciating the need for change within the services for people and better understanding by those using the mental capacity act and DOLs.

I will be publishing copies of the feedback on here, so that others can also appreciate the unprofessionalism and lack of respect the minority showed.

Mental Capacity Act Conference a Decade on

Thursday 30 March 2017

Mental Capacity Act Conference 2017 - Close

The Edith Ellen Foundation and Leigh Day would like to Thank everyone, delegates and Speakers who came to our MCA Conference today.

The whole day was a massive success, with brilliant feedback from the Service Providers who found the day informative and a useful learning tool.  Our Families and Service Users found the opportunity to connect on a "level playing field" with Providers and Care Professionals useful and insightful.



Chair - Rev Bishop David Bennett


Speakers from the Day


Dave Shepherd


MCA & MHA

Leonard Lawrence

The Patients Perspective

Dr. Rainer Hermann Kurz

‘Critical reflections on the role of mental health professionals’
Lynne Phair

Independent Nurse Consultant
Dr Mervyn Eastman
Co-Founder and Society Secretary/Co-Director of Change AGEnts

District Judge Anselm Eldergill

Court of Protection/Professor

Critical Reflections on the Role of Mental Health Professionals - Dr Rainer Hermann Kurz



Dr Rainer Kurz said “I have spent 5 years and £1000’s on this investigation so very pleased to ‘surface’ at the MCA event this ultra-criminality that is predicated on inadequate mental health assessments.”