A starting point for residents, families, and professionals. We update this hub regularly and welcome suggestions for what to add, drop us a line at info@diverseservices.co.uk.
Plain-English explainers on the Mental Health Act, Mental Capacity Act, deprivation of liberty, and how they apply in supported living.
Open the guideUniversal Credit, PIP, ESA, Housing Benefit for supported-housing tenancies, and how the welfare system interacts with supported living.
Open the guideNews from the Diverse team, reflections on the work we do, and helpful resources for residents and professionals alike.
Read the blogThe national research on supported housing, mental-health discharge, and the cost of getting this wrong, with proper citations.
View sourcesThe 2026 edition of our commissioner brochure, sixteen homes, four-step pathway, in-house clinical team, costs and outcomes.
Download (PDF)What our Disability Confident Committed Employer status means, for staff, candidates, and the residents we support.
Read moreSupported living sits at the meeting point of several frameworks. We use this page to demystify them, for residents, families, and new staff. Nothing here is legal advice; if you need that, contact a solicitor or an advocacy service.
The Mental Health Act is the law in England and Wales that allows people with a mental disorder to be detained, assessed, and treated against their will when certain conditions are met. Most residents in supported living are not detained, but many have been at some point in their history. Section 117 of the Act creates a duty for health and social care services to provide free aftercare for people who were detained under qualifying sections; this is often the legal basis for funding a supported-living placement.
Mental Health Act 2025. The Mental Health Act 2025 received Royal Assent on 18 December 2025. It reforms the 1983 Act in important ways: a tighter risk-based test for detention under Sections 2 and 3, the removal of learning disability and autism alone as grounds for detention under Section 3, and the replacement of the Nearest Relative with a patient-chosen Nominated Person. Implementation is phased: a small number of sections commenced on 18 February 2026, the new Code of Practice is being developed through 2026, and the main reforms come into force from 2027.
The Mental Capacity Act protects people who may lack the capacity to make a particular decision at a particular time. All our staff are trained in the Five Principles, including the principle that a person is assumed to have capacity unless proven otherwise, and that an unwise decision is not the same as an incapable one. Decisions made on behalf of someone who lacks capacity must be in their best interests.
The Care Act is the legal foundation of adult social care in England. It sets out local authority duties around assessment, eligibility, care planning, and safeguarding. Residents in our homes typically have a Care Act assessment underpinning their placement, with funding agreed on the basis of identified needs.
Where someone lacks capacity to consent to the arrangements for their care and is, in law, deprived of their liberty, additional protections apply. The current operative framework is the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS), in force under the Mental Capacity Act 2005. The Liberty Protection Safeguards (LPS) were designed to replace DoLS under the Mental Capacity (Amendment) Act 2019, but implementation has been postponed several times. The current position (October 2025) is that the Government will consult on implementing LPS in the first half of 2026, with a revised Code of Practice and an implementation date to follow. Until that happens, DoLS remains the law. Supported living is not, by default, a deprivation of liberty, but the question is fact-specific. We work closely with local authorities and, where necessary, the Court of Protection.
From March 2022, NHS England formally retired the Care Programme Approach (CPA) as a separate framework and replaced it with the Community Mental Health Framework for Adults and Older Adults. The framework is designed to bring every community mental-health service up to a single universal standard, rather than treating CPA recipients as a separate category. We work to the Community Mental Health Framework in our partnership with Community Mental Health Teams, attending care reviews, sharing digital records with consent, and contributing to MDT decision-making.
The Equality Act protects people from discrimination, harassment, and victimisation on the grounds of nine protected characteristics, including disability. As a service that supports adults with mental-health needs, we have specific duties to anticipate and make reasonable adjustments.
Last reviewed: May 2026. Nothing on this page is legal advice. For your specific situation, speak to a solicitor or an advocacy service such as Mind, Rethink, or your local Mental Health Advocate.
A short introduction. This is general guidance, not financial or legal advice, for your specific case, speak to your keyworker, your local authority, or Citizens Advice.
Universal Credit is the main means-tested benefit for working-age adults. Most residents in supported living have a UC claim that covers living costs. Your keyworker can help you set up the journal, attend assessments, and report changes.
PIP is a non-means-tested benefit for people with long-term health conditions or disabilities. It has two components, daily living and mobility, and either can be paid at a standard or enhanced rate. PIP is not affected by working or by other income.
Supported-housing tenancies are usually treated as "exempt accommodation", meaning the housing element is paid via Housing Benefit (not Universal Credit), and the rent can include the cost of more intensive support. This is one reason supported housing is a viable, cost-effective alternative to inpatient care: the financial framework is designed for it.
Some residents are on legacy ESA rather than UC. ESA has a "support group" for people whose ability to work is significantly limited, which does not require ongoing work-related activity.
Where a placement is funded under Section 117 of the Mental Health Act, the placement itself (including care and support costs) is free at the point of use. This is a statutory duty shared by the ICB and the local authority. Residents and families should never be billed for Section 117 aftercare.
Around two dozen articles, news posts, and team reflections are moving across to the new site. Come back shortly, or get in touch in the meantime.
We cite the national evidence base wherever we make a claim, both because it's the right thing to do, and because commissioners need to know that what we say is verifiable.
The headline 2026 report finding that the supported-housing shortfall cost NHS England an estimated £102m in 2024/25, and that supported housing costs around a third of an inpatient bed.
Royal College of Psychiatrists, April 2026.NHS England's analysis of delayed-discharge bed days in mental health services, and the role of housing as the most-cited barrier.
NHS England, 2025.The 2024/25 Welsh Government framework showing that Housing Support Grant services deliver £1.40 net saving per £1 spent, £204m to health, £177m to social care, £70m to criminal justice.
Welsh Government, 2025.NHS England's framework for commissioners around community mental-health rehabilitation, with explicit reference to integrated housing and support.
NHS England, current.We are proud to be a Disability Confident Committed Employer. We have pledged to make our recruitment process inclusive and accessible, to interview disabled candidates who meet minimum job criteria, to anticipate and provide reasonable adjustments, and to support staff who acquire a disability or long-term health condition to remain in work.