A WOMAN has won a legal battle to get her autistic brother released after he was detained for four years in a mental health hospital.

North Yorkshire man Elliot Dodds, 27, was admitted to a psychiatric institution when his mental health deteriorated in April 2018.

His sister, Beckii Davis, says that since then he had remained in an assessment treatment unit (ATU) with restrictions on his liberty.

Beckii, of North Yorkshire, who originally hoped he would receive the help he needed and be home within a few weeks, instructed specialist lawyers at Irwin Mitchell to investigate his care and help secure him a bespoke community care package.

Now, following a trial period in the community, Elliot has been officially discharged from formal detention on August 24 to his own home with the support of carers.

Beckii said: “When Elliot was admitted to hospital, never did we think this would turn into a four year battle.

“The last few years have been incredibly difficult for everyone but particularly Elliot. Seeing him in hospital, locked away from the world and how he was deteriorating was traumatic.

"While he has complex needs, nobody deserves to be treated in that way. He had no quality of life whatsoever.

“My emotions are all over the place now that Elliot has been released. There have been a lot of upsetting and tearful times over the last few years but it means everything to have Elliot in his new home.

"He’s settling into his new surroundings well and growing in confidence every day. He’s already been for a day out at the seaside and he’s made me a list of everything he wants to do.

"A holiday to London is the main thing. To some these may seem like ordinary things that people take for granted but they mean the world to us.

"We remain upset at what we’ve had to go through and more definitely needs to be done to stop keeping people in ATUs. However, I also hope that Elliot coming home gives strength to other families who find themselves in a similar situation to what we did.”

Irwin Mitchell specialist lawyer Kirsty Stuart, who is supporting around 30 families who have relatives with a learning disability and/or autism in ATUs, said Elliot's experience had been 'incredibly upsetting,' not only for him but also his family. 

’Sadly it’s also symptomatic of the other first-hand accounts we continue to hear from families whose loved ones are detained in these units," she said.

She added that despite previous pledges to reduce the number of autistic people and those with a learning disability being detained, far too many were still being held in ATUs.