Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS)
The Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards are the legal process for authorising arrangements that deprive a person of their liberty in a care home or hospital where they lack capacity to consent to them.
Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) in practice
The purpose is protective: if a person’s care arrangements amount to a deprivation of liberty, those arrangements need lawful authorisation, independent scrutiny and a route to challenge them, rather than simply being decided by the service.
What counts as a deprivation of liberty is the part that has moved. For over a decade the working test was the Cheshire West “acid test”, asking whether a person was under continuous supervision and control and not free to leave. That framing was displaced by the Supreme Court in 2026, which set out a broader multifactorial approach and revisited when consent is validly given.
The practical consequence for providers is that policies, training and capacity paperwork written before mid-2026 may state a test that no longer applies. Anything citing the acid test alone should be reviewed rather than trusted.
Related terms
Related definitions
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