Mental Capacity Act and DoLS training: a free pack for care staff and managers, covering the June 2026 ruling
The free pack gives you a staff session on the Mental Capacity Act in everyday care, a manager briefing on DoLS since the Supreme Court's June 2026 ruling, a quiz with a training record and a rollout guide. We built it on CQC's Regulation 13 guidance, the DoLS code of practice and DHSC's 2026 guidance, and it's free by email. Or have us tailor it and run it for you, on a branded company site, from £399.
Staff must work within the Mental Capacity Act whenever they support people who may lack capacity. After the Supreme Court changed the definition of a deprivation of liberty on 2 June 2026, the government asked care home providers and managers to speed up their plans to train staff on it.
Take the free pack and run it yourself, or have us tailor it and run it for you: a branded company site with your training content, every member of staff invited and reminded by email, and a certificate for every completion, from £399 per company.
| Question | Short answer |
|---|---|
| Is training required? | Yes. Providers and staff must understand and work within the Act, and Regulation 18 requires the training staff need for their role. |
| What changed in 2026? | The Supreme Court replaced the 2014 acid test with an assessment of several factors, with immediate effect. |
| Who needs it? | Staff who support people who may lack capacity, and the managers who decide when to ask for a DoLS authorisation. |
| How often? | Skills for Care leaves the refresher period to you, and a change in the law is a reason to train again. |
| What else to update | Your policies, protocols, website and public-facing leaflets, to reflect the new definition. |
What the law expects of your training
CQC’s guidance on Regulation 13 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014 says providers and their staff must understand and work within the Mental Capacity Act 2005 whenever they support people who may lack the capacity to make some decisions. Providers must act in line with the Act’s code of practice and the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards code, and hospitals and care homes must follow the safeguards. Regulation 18 adds that staff must receive the training they need to carry out their duties.
On 2 June 2026 the Supreme Court changed the definition of a deprivation of liberty, with immediate effect. DHSC’s interim guidance asks registered care home providers or managers to speed up their plans to:
- Share the ruling, or an accurate summary of it, across the organisation.
- Train their workforce on the new definition of a deprivation of liberty.
- Review and update their policies, protocols, websites and public-facing leaflets.
NHS England updated its MCA and DoLS e-learning on 30 July 2026, behind a login, and DHSC says revised materials will follow by December 2026. Our Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards guide covers the ruling itself, how to judge each person’s case, the authorisation steps and what CQC expects.
In adult social care, Skills for Care lists mental capacity as training each employer decides on for its own service, and leaves the refresher period to the employer. The adult safeguarding competencies cover the basics of the Act at Level 1, and treat safeguarding training as a complement to MCA and DoLS training. Our safeguarding training pack covers those basics at Levels 1 and 2.
What you’ll get
Run the free pack yourself, or have us tailor it to your organisation and run it for you.
| Free pack | Tailored and run for you, from £399 | |
|---|---|---|
| The content | Complete the general training template | Tailored to your organisation for you |
| How staff complete it | Staff and manager slides with speaker notes, a quiz and a rollout guide, to deliver however suits you | A branded company site with your training content loaded for all staff to complete |
| Getting it to staff | You organise it | Every member of staff emailed for you |
| Reminders and chases | No automation included | Reminders and chases automated for you |
| Certificate of completion | Not included | A dated certificate for every person who completes it |
| Format | PowerPoint slides and Word documents | Audio and video, or a format to upload into your own learning or training hub |
| Managers and employees | A staff session and a manager briefing | Distinct manager and employee training |
| Cost | Free | From £399 per company |
The free pack, file by file
- Staff session. PowerPoint, with speaker notes: the Mental Capacity Act in everyday care, and spotting a possible deprivation of liberty.
- Manager briefing. PowerPoint, with speaker notes: DoLS since the June 2026 ruling, for the people who decide when to ask for an authorisation.
- Quiz and training record. Word: questions with an answer sheet for the presenter, and a training record for everyone to sign.
- Rollout guide. Word: how to tailor, deliver, record, refresh and check the training.
You fill in the gaps with your own policies and contacts, present the sessions and keep your own records. It doesn’t include a certificate of completion.
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The tailored training, part by part
- Tailored to your organisation. We tailor the training content to your organisation, its processes and likely scenarios, with distinct manager and employee training.
- A branded company site, or your own learning hub. Your training content in audio and video, with an understanding check, ready for all your staff to complete; or in a format to upload into your own learning or training hub.
- Distribution taken care of. Invite all your staff, and each person gets an email to complete the training.
- Reminders and chases, automated. We remind anyone who hasn’t finished until they complete it.
- A certificate for every completion. A dated certificate for each person who completes it, to save for your records.
Our team will be in touch with follow-up questions to tailor the content to your organisation.
Request received
Thanks. Our team will be in touch within one working day with follow-up questions to tailor the training to your organisation.
Could not send that request
Something went wrong on our side. Please try again, or use our contact form and our team will be in touch.
What the training covers
Staff session:
- Your role under the Mental Capacity Act, and its principles
- Recognising when someone may lack capacity for a decision, and who to ask
- Best interests decisions
- What counts as restraint, and when it’s allowed
- Listening to the person: their wishes and feelings, and signs they object
- Spotting a possible deprivation of liberty, and who to tell
- Attorneys, deputies and independent mental capacity advocates
- What changed in June 2026
Manager briefing:
- The Supreme Court’s June 2026 ruling, and what it changed
- Judging each person’s case: the factors to weigh
- When to ask for a standard authorisation, and when to give an urgent one
- Authorisations already in place: reviews and reducing restrictions
- When in doubt: keep using DoLS, or refer to the local authority
- Written records, and telling CQC the outcome
- Sharing the ruling, and updating your policies, protocols and leaflets
After the training
Check it worked. Skills for Care suggests a mix of checks: watching how staff work, a quiz in a team meeting, and talking through practice in supervision.
Train again when the guidance changes. DHSC has said it will publish more interim guidance on the ruling, with practical case studies. When it arrives, update the training and your policies together.
Judge each person’s case. For each person whose care may deprive them of their liberty, our DoLS guide sets out the factors to weigh, the authorisation steps and the time limits.
Our free safeguarding and medication training packs work the same way.
Common questions
Is Mental Capacity Act training mandatory?
Yes, for staff who support people who may lack capacity. CQC's guidance on Regulation 13 says providers and their staff must understand and work within the Act whenever they support people who may lack the capacity to make some decisions, and Regulation 18 requires the training staff need for their role. Skills for Care lists mental capacity as training each adult social care employer decides on for its own service.
Do care staff need retraining after the 2026 Supreme Court ruling?
DHSC's interim guidance asks registered care home providers or managers to speed up their plans to train their workforce on the new definition of a deprivation of liberty, and to share the ruling across the organisation. The change took effect on 2 June 2026.
What's the difference between MCA and DoLS training?
The Mental Capacity Act sets the legal framework for acting and making decisions for people who lack the capacity to make those decisions themselves. The Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards add protections in hospitals and care homes for people whose care may deprive them of their liberty. The pack covers both: the staff session leads on the Act, and the manager briefing on DoLS.
Who needs DoLS training?
Staff who support people who may lack capacity need to recognise a possible deprivation of liberty and know who to tell. The managers and senior staff who decide when to ask for an authorisation need more, and the manager briefing is for them.
How often should staff refresh MCA and DoLS training?
Skills for Care sets no fixed refresher period for mental capacity training and leaves it to the employer. Its reasons to train again include changes to legislation, practice, guidance and policy, and DHSC has said it will publish more guidance on the June 2026 ruling.
What's in the free Mental Capacity Act and DoLS training pack?
Four editable files: a staff session (PowerPoint, with speaker notes), a manager briefing (PowerPoint, with speaker notes), a quiz with answers and a training record to sign (Word), and a rollout guide (Word).
What's the difference between the free pack and the tailored training?
The free pack is the template: four editable files you fill in, present and record yourself, with no certificate of completion. We tailor the training to your organisation and run it for you: a branded company site with your training content, every member of staff invited by email and reminded until they complete it, and a dated certificate for every completion.
Does this cover Scotland and Northern Ireland?
No. The Mental Capacity Act 2005 and its Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards, which the pack follows, apply in England and Wales. DHSC says the Supreme Court's new definition of a deprivation of liberty extends across the UK.
References
- CQC: Regulation 13, safeguarding service users from abuse and improper treatment
- Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014, regulation 18: staffing
- DHSC: UK Supreme Court 2026 judgment on what constitutes a deprivation of liberty (interim guidance, updated 22 September 2026)
- Office of the Public Guardian: Deprivation of Liberty Code of Practice (republished 2 June 2026)
- Skills for Care: Statutory and mandatory training guide (December 2025)
- Royal College of Nursing and partner colleges: Adult safeguarding, roles and competencies for health care staff, second edition (2024)
- Royal College of Nursing: Adult safeguarding competencies, summary of changes (August 2024)
General information, not legal advice. It reflects our understanding of the law and official guidance as of October 2026, so check the sources above for the current position.