ABSTRACT
This chapter explores one component of the complex mental health system, namely the role of independent oversight bodies – so-called ‘commissions’ – to inspect mental health facilities, monitor the operation of mental health law, and protect the rights of mentally ill persons detained under legislation. The chapter focuses on the system of mental health monitoring and regulation in England through the work of the Care Quality Commission (CQC) – an independent regulator of health and social care – and explains how international human rights standards inform its monitoring work. In particular, the chapter considers the obligations imposed on national monitors such as the CQC through the United Nations Optional Protocol to the Convention Against Torture (OPCAT) and assesses the impact of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities on monitoring in the mental health context.
