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Advocacy

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What is advocacy?

Advocacy is about supporting people to get their message across.

Advocacy makes sure a persons voice is heard, that their needs are met and they get the services they want and need, that they know their rights and have information to make informed choices.

Advocacy is something that one person does in support of another. It is about:

safeguarding people who are in situations where they are vulnerable
speaking up for, or standing alongside, people who are not being heard - helping them to express their views and make their own decisions and contributions
enabling people to make informed choices about, and remain in control of, their own social and health care

What is independent advocacy?

Independent advocates do not act in what they see as the ‘best interests’ of the person they advocate for in the same way that a social or health worker might. They do not try to ‘see both sides of the argument’. Instead, independent advocates act only according to the wishes of the person being advocated for. They do not take their own view of what is best or try to influence the person to make a different choice.

Independent advocacy comes in different forms. The main ones are:

Citizen Advocacy: A one-to-one partnership between a trained unpaid volunteer and a vulnerable person. This tends to be a long-term relationship.
Professional Advocacy: Paid professional staff with expert knowledge (legal, health or social care) act as advocates. These tend to work with people on a shorter-term basis than citizen advocates, supporting the person with a particular issue or issues.
Collective (or Group) Self-Advocacy: Support is offered to allow vulnerable people to come together and gain strength from a collective voice.

What would I need an advocate for?

At certain times people can find it difficult to voice their concerns or express their point of view. They could be in a stressful situation without anyone to support them.

If you can remember times when you have been ignored, excluded or treated unfairly, then you will know how important it is to be able to stand up for yourself or have someone one your side.

It is often on these occasions that an advocate can help by meeting personally with the individual and providing whatever advocacy support they need.

How can I find someone to advocate for me / with me?

There are many voluntary organisations for disabled people that can provide an advocacy service.

For an organisation in your area, see our section on Support Services / Organisations for Disabled People

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