| Act of Parliament | |
 | |
| Long title | An Act for the Regulation of the Care and Treatment of Lunatics, and for the Provision, Maintenance and Regulation of Lunatic Asylums in Scotland. |
|---|---|
| Citation | 20 & 21 Vict. c. 71 |
| Dates | |
| Royal assent | 25 August 1857 |
| Other legislation | |
| Amended by | Statute Law Revision Act 1875 |
The Lunacy (Scotland) Act 1857 [1] (20 & 21 Vict. c. 71) formed mental health law in Scotland from 1857 until 1913.
Prior to the Lunacy (Scotland) Act, lunacy legislation in Scotland was enshrined in the Madhouses (Scotland) Act 1815 which established the right of Scottish Sheriffs to order the inspection of madhouses. [2] However the Scottish Lunacy Commission inquiry which reported in 1857 found that the official oversight of mental health institutions "remained at best variable and at worst simply inadequate". [3] It recommended the formation of a "Scottish Lunacy Board" who would address the shortfall in oversight. [3] [4]
The legislation created a General Board of Commissioners in Lunacy for Scotland. It also created district boards with the power to establish and operate publicly funded "district asylums" for patients who could not afford the fees charged by existing private and charitable "Royal Asylums". [3] These existing "Royal Asylums" (with Royal Charters) included the Aberdeen Royal Lunatic Asylum, the Crichton Royal Institution, the Dundee Royal Lunatic Asylum, the Royal Edinburgh Lunatic Asylum, the Glasgow Royal Lunatic Asylum, the Montrose Royal Lunatic Asylum and James Murray's Royal Lunatic Asylum. [5] The aim of the legislation was to establish a network of "district asylums" with coverage throughout Scotland. [6]
Under the Mental Deficiency and Lunacy (Scotland) Act 1913, the General Board of Commissioners in Lunacy for Scotland was reconstructed and designated the General Board of Control for Scotland. [7]
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The Scottish Office was a department of the Government of the United Kingdom from 1885 until 1999, exercising a wide range of government functions in relation to Scotland under the control of the Secretary of State for Scotland. Following the establishment of the Scottish Parliament in 1999, most of its work was transferred to the newly established Scottish Executive, with a small residue of functions retained by the Scotland Office.
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Lunacy Act is a stock short title used in the United Kingdom for legislation relating to mental illness.
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The Mental Deficiency Act 1913 was an act of Parliament of the United Kingdom creating provisions for the institutional treatment of people deemed to be "feeble-minded" and "moral defectives". People deemed "mentally defective" under this Act could be locked up indefinitely in a "mental deficiency colony", despite not being diagnosed with any mental illness or disability, or committing any crime.
The Old Manor Hospital was a psychiatric hospital in Salisbury, Wiltshire, England. It was established in the early 19th century as a private licensed house called Fisherton House or Fisherton House Asylum, which became the largest private madhouse in the United Kingdom. In 1924, following a change of proprietors, it was renamed Old Manor Hospital and in 1955 it was amalgamated into the National Health Service. From 1813 to 1955 it was owned and managed by members of the same family. The Old Manor Hospital closed in 2003 and was replaced by Fountain Way, a smaller, modern, psychiatric hospital on part of the same site. In 2014 the site was acquired by Quantum Group for development as a residential estate and the conversion of the main building to a hotel.
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The Commissioners in Lunacy for Scotland or Lunacy Commission for Scotland were a public body established by the Lunacy (Scotland) Act 1857 to oversee asylums and the welfare of mentally ill people in Scotland.
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The Commissioners in Lunacy for Ireland or Lunacy Commission for Ireland were a public body established by the Lunacy (Ireland) Act 1821 to oversee asylums and the welfare of mentally ill people in Ireland.
