Family told to call locksmith over mental health fears

• Police forces must implement robust systems to flag mental health concerns and ensure automatic referral to mental health services when families report welfare concerns, rather than treating such calls as isolated incidents
• The IOPC investigation highlights a significant gap in inter-agency communication between police and mental health services that may compromise patient safety and early intervention opportunities
• GPs should be aware of potential failures in the safeguarding pathway and consider direct outreach to mental health services for vulnerable patients, rather than relying solely on police referrals

A force should have flagged mental health services after a family called about their son, IOPC says.

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