New case alert: Newcastle-Upon-Tyne City Council v TP (Best interests of TP No. 1) [2016] EWCOP B3

​Fact finding hearing to determine whether the Local Authority's allegations against the person purportedly looking after her were made out. The court made most of the findings the Local Authority sought.

Until 2011, the Patient TP, who was born with cerebral palsy, was accepting of appropriate services and there was no reluctance to accept such services. She became friendly with FW and as FW's influence became more pronounced, the services were cancelled. The Local Authority became involved and asked the court to make findings in accordance with the schedule of findings which it had provided. They set out 4 allegations as follows:

1. FW systematically isolated TP from her family, professionals, friends and neighbours by encouraging her to disengage with all services she had in place. It is the local authority's view that P did not have the capacity to make the decisions to cancel the services and engagement that she did but that she was instructed to do so by FW.
2. FW has financially exploited TP and depleted the monies that she had in the bank.
3. FW has behaved in a manner that is controlling and coercive towards TP.
4. FW's living arrangements for TP are inappropriate. FW is an unrelated male who carries out intimate caring tasks for TP, such as helping her out of the bath, that there is no door to the bathroom in the home to afford TP privacy when using the toilet or the bath and to preserve her dignity in this area, and that there was no door between FW and TP's bedrooms.

The court was satisfied that FW influenced TP to discontinue any previous relationships, either personal or professionals, and prevailed upon TP so that she no longer had any assistance, or support, or relationship with anyone other than himself. She became completely reliant upon him in every regard. He exerted complete control over her. It was a gradual process from 2011 until 2016 but by 2016 it was complete. The court made the findings the Local Authority sought in the four allegations that it put in the schedule.

Editor's note
This case demonstrates the difficulties with balancing P’s wishes and feelings when they have been strongly expressed.  The court referred to the decision of Peter Jackson J, in Wye Valley NHS Trust v B [2015] EWCOP 60, that although P’s wishes and feelings may be a significant factor they may not be determinative of the case.  A finding of lack of capacity to make decisions does not switch off the P’s rights and freedoms. This case also illustrates the difficulty in balancing the need to protect the P from harm against the harm caused by the protection. The proposal in this case was not the least restrictive placement for P but the protection from harm outweighed the harm caused by the protection.

There were three judgments in this case and the court in the number two judgment deals with the law and process of establishing whether someone lacks capacity to make decisions, by reviewing and setting out recent case law on this issue.

​Read the full text of the judgment on Bailii