DoLS and CQC reviews of local authorities
- Edge Training
- 13 minutes ago
- 1 min read
Cumberland Council has recently been rated as ‘Requires Improvement’ following a review by the CQC (January 2026). One of the factors identified related to the local authorities management of DoLS: ‘There was a significant DoLS waiting list, with long waits for authorisations for some people. This left people at risk of being deprived of their liberty unlawfully. A prioritisation tool was supporting risk rating of applications and people at the highest risk to be reviewed first.’
‘There were delays in assessing DoLS applications which increased the risk of people’s liberty being restricted. As of June 2025, there were 774 DoLS applications waiting for allocation.’
Although DoLS is often criticised as ‘not working’ due to local authorities having waiting lists for DoLS assessments, the reality is that many local authorities have multiple waiting lists for different assessments and services. In this case the CQC noted: ‘Some people experienced waits for assessments, annual reviews, occupational therapy assessments, equipment delivery, financial assessments and outcomes of Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards assessments. Despite this, those at most risk were supported in a timely manner through waiting well procedures.’
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