Appropriate adult at the police station

An appropriate adult is someone who will support you if you are arrested or questioned by the police. This section looks at what an appropriate adult is there to do and who can get their support. This information is for adults affected by mental illness in England. It’s also for their loved ones and carers and anyone interested in this subject.

If you would like more advice or information you can contact our Advice and Information Service by clicking here.

Download Appropriate Adult at the police station factsheet

Overview

If you are vulnerable, you should have an appropriate adult with you at the police station to help you understand what is going on.
The appropriate adult makes sure the police treat you fairly and respect your rights.
The appropriate adult makes sure that you understand what is happening at the police station.
Appropriate adults can’t give you legal advice but they can help you to get a solicitor.
You have the right to speak to an appropriate adult at any time at the police station if you are vulnerable.
You have the right to speak to your appropriate adult in private.
The appropriate adult might be your carer or relative, or a trained person.
You have the right to free legal advice from a solicitor if you are arrested. You can have both an appropriate adult and a solicitor.

Need more advice?

If you need more advice or information you can contact our Advice and Information Service.

At the police station

Who will I meet at the police station?

Custody Sergeant

The custody sergeant allows someone to be held at the police station. They will tell you why you have been arrested and why you’re being held at the station. They will:

tell you your rights,
decide if you are vulnerable because of your mental health, or
need an appropriate adult.

The custody sergeant is responsible for all the people in the cells of the police station.

Officer in charge of the case

This is the police officer who is responsible for investigating the allegations against you. They may interview you.

Review officer

The review officer is not involved in investigating your case. They will review your detention when you are in the police station.

A legal adviser

This is someone who is trained to advise you if the police think you have committed a crime. Some of them can prepare your case if you have to go to court. They may be a solicitor, or someone authorised by the Legal Aid Agency to give you advice.

If the police arrest you because they think you have committed a crime you have the right to speak to a legal adviser.

You can use the police station duty solicitor scheme if you can’t arrange your own legal representative.

You can speak to a legal adviser in person, in writing or on the telephone. Their advice is free, and they are independent of the police.

You may want to use your own solicitor. You can do this, but you will probably have to pay for their advice.

Health care professional (HCP)

This is someone who is a medical practitioner like a nurse or paramedic. Most police forces have HCP’s, but some have forensic medical examiners (FME’s). FME’s are doctors.

The police can ask an HCP to see you if you need medical care. For example, if you:

appear to have a physical illness,
are injured,
appear to have a mental illness,
appear to need medical help, or
are suffering the effects of alcohol or drugs.

You can ask to see an HCP for a medical examination. You can also choose to be examined by a medical practitioner that you know. But you may have to pay for this. It can take a long time to organise seeing your choice of medical practitioner. Especially if you are arrested at night.

The HCP can decide if you’re well enough for the police to interview you or keep you at the station. They can arrange a Mental Health Act assessment if they think this is needed.

If your legal representative is worried about your mental health, they can ask the HCP about a mental health assessment. You need to give your legal representative permission to do this.

Appropriate adult

Can I have an appropriate adult?

You will be able to get an appropriate adult (AA) if you are arrested. And you appear to be ‘mentally vulnerable’.

The police may think you are vulnerable if they believe that you will not understand what they say to you because of your mental capacity. You do not need a diagnosed mental illness to be mentally vulnerable.

You should be classed as vulnerable if you:

have difficulty understanding the consequences of what is happening to you at the police station,
don’t seem to understand the importance of what you are told,
don’t seem to understand the importance of questions the police ask you,
don’t seem to understand the importance of your replies to the police questions,
appear to become confused and unclear about what is happening,
provide unreliable, misleading or incriminating information without meaning to,
do what other people tell you to do without wanting to, or
agree with everything someone is saying without questioning it.

The custody sergeant is responsible for your care and welfare while you are at the police station. The custody sergeant should get an AA for you if they think you are mentally vulnerable. If you are vulnerable and are not given an AA you can ask the custody sergeant to get you one.

An AA will only support you in a police station. Or if you are questioned by the police.

You must have an AA with you if you are mentally vulnerable and you are:

interviewed to find out how you may be linked to a crime
asked to give a written statement under caution or record of interview,
asked to sign a written statement under caution or record of interview,
asked to give your fingerprints, or
asked to give a DNA sample.

But an urgent interview can take place without your AA with you if there is a good reason not to delay. A good reason could include:

harm to evidence that is linked to a crime, or
physical harm to other people.

What does an appropriate adult do?

Your appropriate adult (AA) is there to make sure you understand what is happening. And why it is happening. They can:

support you when the police ask you questions,
help you talk to the police,
make sure that you understand your rights,
make sure the police behave properly and respect your rights, and
help you to get a legal adviser.

Your AA can’t give you legal advice. You can have both an AA and a solicitor.

You can talk to your AA in private, at any time. But be aware that your AA doesn’t have ‘legal privilege.’ See below for more information.

Who can be my appropriate adult?

Your appropriate adult (AA) can be:

a relative or carer,
anyone experienced in working with vulnerable people. This will include your care coordinator, a social worker or community psychiatric nurse,
a trained appropriate adult, or
a responsible person who is over 18 who is not employed by the police.

Your AA will be independent from the police. This means that they don’t work for the police.

A trained AA can be the best person to support you. They will understand the criminal justice system. And will make sure you understand what the police tell you. But you might prefer your appropriate adult to be your carer or relative. They may not understand the system as well as someone who is trained. But you may feel more comfortable with them.

Your relative can’t be forced to be your AA if they don’t want to be. But there are guides online that they can use to understand their role as your AA. The guides are written by the charity, National Appropriate Adult Network. Their contact details are at the bottom of this page.

It is unlikely that you will be allowed to have a professional AA and a relative or friend to support you at the same time. But you can still ask.

What happens next?

What might happen when I am at the police station?

This section covers a number of things that may happen to you when you are at the police station.

What does being cautioned mean?

The police must caution you when your appropriate adult (AA) is with you. The police will have to repeat your caution if they tell you when your AA is not with you.

The custody sergeant will read this caution to you:

“You do not have to say anything. But it may harm your defence if you do not mention, when questioned, something which you later rely on in court. Anything you do say may be given in evidence.”

The caution means:

you don’t have to answer questions. But if you choose to, your answers may be used as evidence in court,
the court may think it is strange if you say something in court to help your case, but you don’t say it in the interview. The court might wonder why you didn’t tell the police.

The police should check that you understand what the caution means. You can ask your AA to explain it to you.

What are my rights?

The custody sergeant should give you information about your rights in writing. You have the right to:

have free independent legal advice,
have someone informed of your arrest,
read the PACE Codes of Practice,
free medical help,
remain silent,
be told what you are suspected of doing,
see any records about why you have been arrested,
free translation or interpretation,
be told how long you might be held, and
contact your consulate or embassy.

What are the PACE Codes of Practice?

The police must follow the PACE Codes of Practice which set out their powers, responsibilities and procedures in detail. They say how the police should behave towards you.

What are my entitlements?

You are entitled to:

a reasonable standard of physical comfort,
enough food and drink,
use a toilet and washing facilities,
clothing,
personal health and hygiene needs, such as sanitary towels,
medical attention, and
exercise.

What is my custody record?

Your custody record holds information about the following.

Your personal details.
What happened before you were arrested.
Why you were arrested.
Your caution.
Anything that you said when you were arrested.

Your appropriate adult (AA) is allowed to see your custody record. The information should be given to them as quickly as possible. They can make sure the information in your custody record is correct. They can check the following.

If the police have told anyone you have been arrested.
If the review officer has reviewed your detention.
If the police have called a healthcare professional.
When you last had food or drink.
If the police have dealt with your case quickly.

What happens if I am kept in police custody?

You will be kept in police custody if you are not allowed to leave the police station. This is also known as ‘being detained by the police.’

A ‘review officer’ will decide if you need to stay at the police station within 6 hours of the start of your detention. They will review you again every 9 hours, after the first review, if they decide that you need to stay at the police station.

You, your appropriate adult (AA) or solicitor can talk to the review officer about your detention. Your AA can be with you when you are reviewed.

Can my appropriate adult speak up for me?

Your appropriate adult (AA) should speak to the custody sergeant if they feel that the police are treating you badly.

What happens in the interview?

One of the main reasons the police keep you at a police station is to ask you questions. Before you are asked questions, the police should caution you again. You will usually be asked questions as part of your police interview.

You must have an appropriate adult (AA) with you if you are mentally vulnerable and you are interviewed. But an interview can take place without your AA with you if there is a good reason not to delay the interview. See the start of this page for more information.

During your interview your AA should make sure that the following happens.

You understand the questions the police ask you.
The questions that the police ask you are not confusing, repetitive or threatening.
The police understand your reply.

Your AA should raise any concerns that they have about the interview as soon as they can. Your AA can interrupt your interview at any time. Your AA may ask the police to rephrase questions for you. Or tell the police if they are speaking too quickly for you to understand.

Your AA can ask the police to stop the interview if:

you are confused,
very upset, or
you need a break.

Your AA can ask the police to stop the interview if they feel that the police are not carrying out the interview properly. You and your AA can ask to speak to a solicitor at any time.

What happens at the end of the interview?

At the end of the interview your appropriate adult (AA) should say anything that they would like to add. For example, your AA may make a comment about the way the police interviewed you if they don’t think that the police followed procedure.

The custody sergeant will talk to the officer involved in your case before deciding whether to charge you.

Your AA should be there when the police read the charge to you. And when they tell you what is going to happen to you.

The police may ask for your photograph, fingerprints, a DNA sample and a hair sample. You usually have to agree to this, and your AA has to be there when it happens. You or your AA should get legal advice before you agree to it. But the police can take your fingerprints without your agreement if:

you are detained because you have committed a crime
you have been charged for a crime, or
you have been told that you will be charged for a crime

The rules the police must follow when they take samples are complicated. You should get legal advice if you are not sure if you should give samples.

You can find more information about ‘Police Stations - what happens when you are arrested’ by clicking here.

Confidentiality & legal advice

What about confidentiality?

You have the right to see your legal adviser in private.

The information that you give to your legal adviser is confidential. This means that your legal adviser can’t be asked to give evidence against you.

If you tell anyone else, including your appropriate adult (AA), they could be asked to give evidence against you in court. If you agree, your legal representative can share information with your AA and the police. But most of the time your meetings with the legal adviser are confidential. This means the adviser will not tell anyone else what you have spoken about, unless you say they can.

Your AA does not have to know what you and your legal adviser talked about. You should not tell them anything you don’t want them to know.

When should I get legal advice?

Everyone has the right to legal advice. You will not look guilty if you have a legal adviser.

Tell your appropriate adult (AA) or custody sergeant if you want to speak to a legal adviser. They can help you to get one. It is free to speak to a legal adviser at the police station. The legal adviser may give you advice over the phone to start with. They can also come to see you at the police station.

Your AA can call a legal adviser for you even if you don’t want one. Your AA can do this if they think that it will be in your best interests to speak to a legal adviser. But you don’t have to see the legal adviser if you don’t want to.

You can change your mind any time and ask to see a legal adviser.

Problems

What should I do if I am unhappy about something at the police station?

You can speak to your appropriate adult (AA) or custody sergeant if you’re not happy about something that has happened at the police station. The custody sergeant should record your concerns in your custody record.

You can make a formal complaint to the police. There will be a leaflet about making a complaint in the police station.

You can find more information about ‘Complaints about the police’ by clicking here.

Carers, relatives & friends

I am a carer, relative or friend. What do I need to know?

Will I be told if the person I care for has been arrested?

Your relative has the right to allow the police to tell someone that they have been arrested. For more information see the previous section.

How do I get my relative an appropriate adult?

Your relative should be given an appropriate adult (AA) if they are mentally vulnerable.

If the police have not given your relative an AA, explain to them why your relative needs an AA. You can speak to the custody sergeant too. They are responsible for the welfare of people held in the police station.

Can I be my relative’s appropriate adult?

You can be your relative’s appropriate adult (AA) if:

your relative wants you to be,
you are willing and able to be,

and you are not:

suspected of being involved in the offence
the victim
a witness, or
involved in the investigation.

But a trained AA may be a better person to support your relative. See the previous section for more information.

Useful contacts

The National Appropriate Adult Network (NAAN)
NAAN is a national charity. They support and represent organisations to deliver appropriate adult services in England and Wales. They have lots of information on the role of the appropriate adult on their website.

Telephone: 07739 904 858
Address:19 North Street, Ashford, Kent, TN24 8LF
Email: admin@appropriateadult.org.uk
Website: www.appropriateadult.org.uk