Review of the statutory role of Director of the Decision Support Service

The commencement of the Assisted Decision-Making (Capacity) Act 2015, as amended, on the 26th of April 2023, provided for the establishment of the Decision Support Service. The Decision Support Service has a number of significant statutory responsibilities under the 2015 Act and have responsibility for responding to the complex decision-making needs of people with capacity difficulties.

Due to their critical role in the functioning of the Assisted Decision-Making (Capacity) Act 2015, the Act provided for a review of the statutory role of Director of the Decision Support Service, including:

(a) on the effectiveness of the Director,

(b) on the adequacy of the functions assigned under this Act to the Director, and

(c) containing such recommendations (if any) that the Mental Health Commission considers would improve the effectiveness of the Director or the adequacy of the functions assigned to the Director under this Act, or both.

The Board of the Mental Health Commission engaged Governance Ireland to conduct a review and prepare this report under Section 102(3).