COP3 Mental Capacity Assessment Form
What is a COP3 Mental Capacity Assessment Form?
A COP3 Mental Capacity Assessment Form (sometimes referred to as a COP3 Mental Capacity Report or COP3 form) is a form used in the Court of Protection to submit expert opinion whether a person has the the mental capacity to make a specific decision. Our fixed-fee COP3 reports are £450 plus VAT wherever in England or Wales you are (we never charge travel expenses). A COP3 report is completed by an experienced Mental Capacity Assessor (often a Social Worker or Psychiatrist) and is used when making an application to make decisions for another person, such as when making an application to become a deputy for property and financial affairs or health and welfare decisions.
If you require a COP3 report for a deputyship application in relation to a Child Trust Fund, please go here for more details.
Over Two Decades Assessing Mental Capacity
Neil and Gary are qualified and experienced Best Interests Assessors and with over 20 years combined experience have completed over a thousand Mental Capacity Assessments. We can assess a person’s mental capacity and complete Part B of the COP3 report promptly and professionally. A COP3 Mental Capacity Assessment is quite brief in comparison to a full Mental Capacity report so it’s important to select a competent Mental Capacity Assessor who can identify only the necessary information but still provide enough evidence as to the person’s capacity.
We offer a swift COP3 Mental Capacity Assessment service and ensure that once you are happy with the electronic draft COP3 form, a copy with a wet signature can be sent to you using Royal Mail’s recorded delivery service (next day) at no additional cost if required. From instruction to returning the complete assessment, our aim is to complete the COP3 report within 14 days although we can usually accommodate more urgent timeframes.
Depending upon the person’s circumstances, we can either conduct COP3 Mental Capacity Assessments over a video call or face-to-face. Of utmost importance is, whatever approach is used, the principles of the Mental Capacity Act are preserved and the person is not at a disadvantage because the wrong approach is used. When instructed, there will always be a conversation about this and agreement on the best approach to take.
Contact us today for a completed COP3 Mental Capacity Assessment within 14 days (or 7 days for an urgent report at no extra cost)
Often, we are instructed by solicitors familiar with the process to complete COP3 Mental Capacity Assessments. If you’re a family member and not instructing a solicitor to help you make the application, it can be quite daunting. Please don’t worry about the process, we are always happy to talk to you about the process of a COP3 Mental Capacity Assessment. We are experienced consultant Social Workers and have worked with children and adults with communication and cognitive difficulties since 2005. We are always happy to explain what our intentions are. Part of our preparatory work is to discuss how best to communicate with the person being assessed and help them feel at ease with the process.
Sometimes, when instructed to complete a COP3 Mental Capacity Assessment, the person has the mental capacity to decide who should make decisions about their health and welfare or property and financial affairs. In such instances, it may be appropriate for them to appoint an attorney (Lasting Power of Attorney) rather than a deputy be appointed. If this is the case, instead of completing a COP3 report, we can write a short summary of our findings (about 1 side of A4) to support our conclusions. For an additional cost, we can write a full Mental Capacity report or act as a certificate provider should they wish to appoint an attorney.
In September 2023, following an increase in referrals across Cornwall, Devon, Dorset and Southampton, we established a South West Regional Hub of Simply Social Work. We have offices in Southampton and Exeter to specifically cover from Southampton, across Dorset (including Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole), into Devon (including Exeter, Torbay and Plymouth) and into Cornwall (including St Austell, Redruth and Truro).
If you would like to discuss this service further or would like to instruct us to complete a COP3 Mental Capacity Assessment, please do not hesitate to contact us. Or send a WhatsApp message to 07441443895. If you work for a law firm, we are also happy to be added to your directory of trusted Mental Capacity Assessors.
