Public protection committee

Concerned About a Child?

Contact Orkney Health and Care Children and Families Services, Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm.

For emergencies outside office hours, call NHS Orkney. 

Adult Support and Protection in Orkney

The Adult Support and Protection (Scotland) Act became law in 2007. It gives local authorities the power and responsibility to investigate when an adult may be at risk, and to support adults who are at risk of harm.

To be helped under this Act, a person must:

• Be unable to look after their own welfare, finances, or property
• Be at risk of harm
• Be more vulnerable to harm than others, due to disability, mental illness, or frailty

Even if someone doesn't meet these criteria, the local authority will still offer advice or assistance.

What Does Harm Mean?

Harm is anything that negatively affects a person or the way they want to live. This might mean someone is abusing them, neglecting them, or that they're neglecting their own wellbeing. Harm can happen at home, in a care home, in hospital, or in the community, and includes:

• Financial harm: money or property being taken by someone else, often a family member or friend, though scams by mail, phone, or bogus workmen are also common
• Physical harm: being hit, slapped, or assaulted in any way that causes injury or pain
• Sexual harm: including sexual assault or rape; older or disabled people can be particularly vulnerable to this, even though it's often hard for people to acknowledge
• Psychological harm: threats, emotional pressure, or having affection withheld or made conditional; this can be difficult to spot
• Neglect: not providing food, warmth, medication, or medical care, sometimes because a person's changing needs haven't been properly recognised.