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Advice line
What we can advise on
We can provide information and advice in relation to rights and good practice to do with:
- Mental health and incapacity law
- Care and treatment
If we cannot help directly, we can signpost you to other organisations who can.
What we can't advise on
We won't:
- Give specific legal advice
- Comment on whether diagnosis or medication is correct
- Take complaints about services (you need to complain locally; your advocate can help you)
You can contact our Advice Line or office during office hours.
British Sign Language users can contact us using contactScotland online interpreting service.
If your interest is
Personal
Advice line
Calls are free.
Our phone advice line is open Monday to Friday, from 9am to 12pm and then from 1pm to 4pm.
When emailing please tell us which area of Scotland you are in so that we can pass it to the member of staff who covers your area. Remember email is not a secure or confidential way to contact us.
We aim to respond to emails or letters within two weeks.
See also
If you are in crisis, or want to talk about how you feel, call:
NHS 24
Free, 24 hours, if you are ill and can't wait until your regular NHS service reopens.
Breathing Space
Free, confidential service for people experiencing low mood, depression or anxiety.
If your interest is
Professional
Advice line
Our phone advice line is open Monday to Friday, from 9am to 12pm and then from 1pm to 4pm.
Our duty practitioners will aim to call you back within 90 minutes of your call. Unfortunately, due to high demand, we cannot schedule call backs outside of that period.
Please note you can also email us on mwc.enquiries@nhs.scot.
When emailing please tell which area of Scotland you are in, so that we can pass it to the member of staff who covers your area. Any confidential information must be sent via secure email.
We aim to respond to emails or letters within two weeks.
About the Advice Line
We use a callback system where we take brief details of your query and a contact number. This means our staff can try to look into some background on your query before calling you back.
Updated email addresses for sending us Mental Health Act (MHA) and Criminal Procedures Scotland Act (CPSA) forms:
From Monday 3 July 2023, the Mental Welfare Commission is undergoing changes to how we receive forms in relation to the Mental Health Act (MHA) and Criminal Procedures Scotland Act (CPSA). The Commission will be moving to a two team structure based on geographical areas or based on health board areas, with separate emails for each team.
About the Advice Line
We use a callback system where we take brief details of your query and a contact number. This means our staff can try to look into some background on your query before calling you back.
Media enquiries
During remote working, for urgent media enquires please call our main number 0131 313 8777 and ask to be put through to Communications. Or email mwc.communications@nhs.scot.
Post
Although we are able to process any items sent by post, we request, wherever possible, that all communications are sent by email.
Notifications/forms from medical records should be sent to Team A or Team B, depending on geographical area:
- for Ayrshire & Arran, Dumfries & Galloway, Greater Glasgow & Clyde, Highland, Lanarkshire, The State Hospital, and the Western Isles, please email ci.mwc.teama@nhs.scot
- for Borders, Fife, Forth Valley, Grampian, Lothian, Orkney & Shetland, and Tayside, please email ci.mwc.teamb@nhs.scot
Other enquiries should be sent to
mwc.enquiries@nhs.scot
Mental Welfare Commission for Scotland
Thistle House
91 Haymarket Terrace
Edinburgh EH12 5HE
Confidentiality of calls and emails
You can talk to us in confidence. We will ask you before we speak to anyone else, unless we're concerned about your safety or someone else's. For more information on our policy see:
Your personal information