“Every day a person is detained in hospital unnecessarily is a day too many. It is therefore unacceptable, more than a decade after action was first promised, that hundreds of people with autism and learning disabilities are still being kept as in-patients when they could be receiving community care.
“In too many cases, patients are also subject to restraint and segregation, which can worsen their conditions and make it increasingly hard for them to go home. In extreme cases, there could be significant violations of human rights.
“The DHSC’s plan to address these concerns has been delayed two years by Covid, and we are pleased it has finally been published.
“However, it does not go far enough and appears to suggest that some patients will still be placed in hospitals rated as inadequate.
“We welcome the draft Mental Health Bill, which aims to reduce the number of inappropriately detained patients in the long term. But action must be taken immediately to move people out of unnecessary detention and into the community.
“The EHRC is exploring how best to use its legal powers to help patients and their families. This may include action in the courts.”