Unable to make your own decisions

If someone lacks mental ‘capacity’

A person may lack ‘capacity’ to make decisions on their own. This could be because the way their mind or brain works is affected, for instance, by illness or disability, or the effects of drugs or alcohol. While the person may lack capacity to make particular decisions at particular times, it does not necessarily mean that they lack all capacity to make any decisions at all. In some cases a professional may need to decide whether a person has capacity to make a particular decision or not. In cases where a person does lack capacity, the Council must establish whether a person has a deputy of the Court of Protection or a person with Lasting Power of Attorney acting on their behalf.

Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA)

This is a legal document that lets you (the ‘donor’) appoint one or more people (known as ‘attorneys’) to help you make decisions, or to make decisions on your behalf.

This gives you more control over what happens to you if, for example, you have an accident or an illness and can’t make decisions at the time they need to be made (you ‘lack mental capacity’).  You must be 18 or over and have mental capacity – the ability to make your own decisions – when you make your LPA.

There are 2 types of LPA:

• Health and welfare
• Property and financial affairs

You can choose to make one type or both.

Deputy appointed by the Court of Protection

You can apply to become someone’s deputy if they ‘lack mental capacity’ - this means they can’t make a particular decision for themselves at the time it needs to be made. They may still be able to make decisions for themselves at certain times.

People may lack mental capacity because, for example:

• They’ve had a serious brain injury or illness
• They have dementia

As a deputy, you’ll be authorised by the Court of Protection to make decisions on their behalf.

There are 2 types of deputy:

• Property and financial affairs, eg paying bills, organising a pension
• Personal welfare, eg making decisions about medical treatment and how someone is looked after

You can apply to be just one type of deputy or both. If you’re appointed, the court will tell you exactly what your responsibilities are.

Information relating to responsibilities can be found on the UK Governments website: