Where a Tribunal does not direct the discharge of a Part 2 patient or community patient during an application or referral to the Tribunal, the Tribunal is empowered to make certain recommendations regarding the patient’s care, with a view towards facilitating the discharge of the patient on a future date. These powers of recommendation are set out in section 72(3) and (3A) of the 1983 Act, which also provides the Tribunal with the power to reconvene to reconsider a case in the event that any such recommendation is not complied with.
	Section 45 extends the Tribunal’s power to make recommendations. Where the Tribunal does not direct the discharge of a patient, it would be able to recommend to the local social services authority and ICB ("responsible after-care body") that they make plans for the provision of after-care services for the patient. After-care services in this context means care to which a patient may be entitled to under section 117 of the 1983 Act, which meet a need arising from or related to the person's mental disorder; and reduces the risk of a deterioration of the person's mental condition. This recommendation is made with the view to facilitating a patient’s discharge on a future date.
	Subsection (2) amends section 72(3)(a) of the 1983 Act to give the Tribunal a new power (see new subsection 72(3)(a)(iii)), when it does not direct the discharge of a patient, to be able to make a recommendation for the "responsible after-care body" to consider making plans for after-care services to be made available for a patient to facilitate a patient’s discharge at a future date.
	Subsection (3) inserts a new section 72(8), to provide definitions to the terms "after-care services" and "responsible after-care bodies", in both cases specifying that the meaning for these terms follows the provisions in section 117 of the 1983 Act.
	The power for the Tribunal to reconvene under section 72(3)(b) to consider a patient’s case again if the recommendations have not been complied with will also apply to this new power. This will ensure that where necessary the Tribunal can challenge the responsible after-care bodies.
After-care Section 45: Tribunal power to recommend after-care