Only 22.8% of completed standard DoLS applications met 21-day timeframe

Fewer than a quarter of completed standard Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards applications in England met the statutory 21-day timeframe in 2025–26. The Department of Health and Social Care’s figures, published on 5 November 2026, put the proportion at 22.8%, up from 21.1% the previous year.

The collection covers 1 April 2025 to 31 March 2026. Councils received 380,715 applications, a 4.3% increase, and 116,355 applications remained incomplete at year end. Data came from 152 of England’s 153 councils with adult social services responsibilities.

Of the 372,145 applications completed during the year, 168,995 were fully assessed and 187,130 were closed without an assessment. The average time from receipt to completion across all completed applications was 117 days. Read the statistical commentary and definitions.

Keep the reporting period in view

These figures describe activity before the Supreme Court’s 2 June 2026 judgment changing the definition of deprivation of liberty. DHSC’s update, revised on 22 September, sets out implications for current practice, assessments and existing authorisations. It also stresses continued safeguards and referral where practitioners are uncertain. Read DHSC’s update on the 2026 judgment.

What care home managers can check

A practical review can start with the service’s outstanding requests. For each one, check the date submitted, the council’s acknowledgement, the current authorisation status and the person responsible for following it up. Keep decisions, review dates and changes in circumstances easy for the responsible practitioner to find.

Ask whether the record gives the team a clear account of the person’s current arrangements and wishes. Where the legal basis for restrictions is uncertain, use the service’s established routes to seek advice and review. At management meetings, look for requests with no recorded follow-up or unclear ownership, then assign an action and a date to check the response.

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