Adults at risk
Major investigation and public protection — Authorised Professional Practice
Summary
This section of the College of Policing's Authorised Professional Practice focuses on the role of policing in identifying, supporting, and safeguarding adults who are at risk of harm. It outlines that adults with specific vulnerabilities, such as mental health issues, substance misuse, or social isolation, are often targeted by perpetrators. Officers are urged to respond to issues affecting the safety and welfare of these adults, including abuse in care settings and domestic violence. The code also references the Care Act 2014, which provides a statutory framework for partnerships in supporting adults at risk, encouraging police forces to triage information through multi-agency safeguarding hubs (MASH). Furthermore, a trauma-informed approach is recommended for officers when interacting with victims. This approach emphasizes trust-building and effective investigations.
Key principles
- 1Identify adults at risk based on vulnerability factors.
- 2Respond to safety and welfare concerns, including potential abuse.
- 3Utilize multi-agency safeguarding hubs (MASH) for information triage.
- 4Adopt a trauma-informed approach in interactions with victims.
Defined terms
- Care Act 2014
- A statutory framework outlining responsibilities for care and support of adults at risk.
- Multi-agency safeguarding hub (MASH)
- A collaborative approach to assess and manage safeguarding concerns.
- Trauma-informed approach
- A method of interaction that fosters trust and supports recovery in victims.
Full guidance
Responding to public protection and major investigation issues, for example, child abuse, knife crime and sexual offences
This page is from APP, the official source of professional practice for policing.
Policing has a crucial role to play in the identification, support and safeguarding of adults who are at risk of harm. Perpetrators will target those with specific vulnerabilities, for example, mental ill health, substance misuse, isolation, to commit or assist in the commission of their crimes, as they know they will be easier to groom, manipulate and threaten, and as victims they are less likely to report their experience for many reasons. Officers and staff encountering adults at risk should identify and respond to issues affecting their safety and welfare including abuse within care settings and domestic abuse. For possible indicators of abuse of adults go to**Annex A** .
The Care Act 2014(opens an external website in the same tab) provides a statutory framework for working in partnership in cases where adults at risk have care and support needs. Forces will be expected to triage information and consider appropriate referrals relating to adults at risk through their multi-agency safeguarding hub (MASH) or equivalent. For further information, go to **MASH guiding principles**(opens an external website in the same tab) .
Officers engaging with adults who have experienced abuse, exploitation or significant adversity should adopt a trauma-informed approach. A trauma-informed approach can help foster rapport and trust-building with victims, support their recovery, and ensure accurate and effective investigations. Examples of trauma-informed approaches can be found on the **Practice bank** .
For further guidance, go to:
– legal guidance – Protects people in England and Wales who may not have the mental capacity to make certain decisions for themselves, such as about their health and finances and will usefully support investigations in this area
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Read the full APP guidanceSource: College of Policing — Authorised Professional Practice · Crown copyright, licensed under Open Government Licence v3.0. Summary fetched 2026-06-27.