Independent Mental Capacity Advocacy (IMCA)

The role of the IMCA is to help people gain a voice and ensure their rights are protected in decisions made about them and to ensure the requirements of the Mental Capacity act 2005 is being followed.

IMCA Eligibility Criteria

The CIIAS will provide IMCAs to all individual staying at the time of instruction within the London Boroughs of Camden regardless of the person's ordinary residence/funding authority.

If a person moves to a different authority once the IMCA has been instructed and before the decisions is made, the service will continue to provide the IMCA unless:

• the IMCA service where the person is newly resident is instructed, or
• the person has moved a significant distance away

Only in exceptional circumstances, will the CIIAS provide a Section 39A IMCA to support a Camden resident located outside of either borough.

A person should be referred to the CIIAS for an IMCA if they meet all of the following criteria:

• They are the subject of a decision around serious medical treatment or a change of accommodation or around a care review or a safeguarding investigation or they are subject to a DOLS assessment.
• They have been assessed (under the key principles of the MCA 2005) as lacking the capacity to make that decision.
• They are aged 16 years or over.
• There is nobody else who the decision-maker considers willing and suitable to be consulted on the decision.

IMCA Referral Information

An IMCA referral will require an up-to-date decision specific capacity assessment to accompany the referral. Non-receipt of this assessment would not delay provision of advocacy at the referral stage, where any delay of advocacy could be detrimental to the client.

Referrals made without an assessment would be considered on an case by case basis and in discussion and agreement with the referrer. The IMCA can request a second capacity assessment if necessary.