Frequently asked questions

What is advocacy?

When someone speaks up for a person with the intention of making sure that person’s views and wishes are listened to with the attention and respect they deserve: this is the essence of advocacy.  Advocacy describes a natural activity which is always present in any community whose members are concerned to look out for one another.  Most people’s first experiences of advocacy come from within the family, where family members support and promote each other’s rights and interests.  Thus a parent may advocate on behalf of their child to her/his class teacher, or a sibling speak up for a brother or sister dealing with the mental health system.

Most people advocate for themselves without thinking about it; for example, when querying a bill or complaining about a poor service, someone is being a self-advocate in defending their own interests.  Some people, however, find it very difficult if not impossible to speak up for themselves in this way. Illness, disability, age, cultural background – these are some of the factors that make it very hard for some people to get their voices heard and which leave them at risk of being excluded from the services and entitlements that most of us take for granted.  This, together with the fact that, for many, families no longer provide the support and cohesion they once did, has led to the development of dedicated organisations offering advocacy support in their communities.

What does an advocate do?

An advocate:

• stands alongside someone to safeguard their rights and promote their interests; 
• is committed to seeing that things go better for that person; 
•  is always interested but does not let his/her own views interfere with what needs to be done;
  
• is non-judgemental but never neutral; 
• does not give advice but aims to help the person gather the information they need to make informed choices and decisions;
• is active but does not ‘take over’, always following the person’s lead and working at their pace; 
• has her/his loyalty focused primarily on the person they are working with; as such, the advocate is separate and independent from any other supports and services the person may be receiving, which means there should be no conflicts of interest;
• is motivated above all by goals of social justice, community inclusion and equal citizenship.

Isn’t advocacy to do with the law?

The services offered by qualified legal practitioners such as solicitors and barristers are examples of specialised, formal advocacy.  In Scotland and some other countries, indeed, lawyers are known as advocates.  This website, however, and the work of ARX, are concerned with non-legal advocacy and forms of advocacy that tend to be community-based.  It could well be, for example, that such a community advocate might help someone to get access to a suitable lawyer where an issue required a specialist legal service.

How do I get an advocate?

Many areas now have established local organisations which provide advocates to work in their communities.  Some of these advocacy organisations focus their activities on groups who are particularly vulnerable - for example, people with mental health issues, refugees, older people with dementia - whilst others work across   a range of needs.  You can find out what advocacy services there are in your area by contacting ARX’s Advocacy Finder Helpline, or else your local voluntary services agency or citizens advice bureau should be able to give you this information.  Most advocacy organisations operate an open referral system, which means that they take requests for advocacy from any source, including self-referrals.  If an organisation is able to help you, following an initial assessment you will be allocated an advocate who will then work alongside you on a one-to-one basis. 

Can I talk to an advocate in confidence?

You can be assured of complete confidentiality in your dealings with an advocate who will never disclose anything you have told them to a third party unless it is with your prior agreement.  The only exception to this is where the advocate has reason to believe that the person they are working with may be at risk of harm either to themselves or to others; in this case, the advocate will aim to discuss their concern first with the person before informing the manager of their organisation.  For advocacy to be fully effective it needs to operate independently from other service provision and not be subject to any other agendas.  A good advocacy organisation is one that has independence at the heart of its operation and is always alert to possible conflicts of interest that may arise in a piece of advocacy work.

How much does it cost?

It should not cost you anything to have an advocate.  You should make sure that the advocate works for an organisation that supervises their activities.  This organisation will usually get the funds it needs from a variety of sources, which may include contracts with statutory agencies such as health and social care; it is a generally observed principle that its operating costs are never passed on to the people who use it and that this kind of advocacy therefore is always free at the point of delivery.  Advocates themselves may be either volunteers from the local community or paid employees of an advocacy organisation; whether they are paid or unpaid should not however affect the way they work in terms of independence and confidentiality.  Although the development of statutory forms of community advocacy such as IMCA (Independent Mental Capacity Advocacy) has resulted in a recent trend towards more paid advocates the principle of a freely-given, one-to-one partnership remains at the heart of a healthy advocacy economy.

How long can I have an advocate for?

There is normally no time limit on an advocate’s involvement with an individual.   Usually an advocate starts working with someone around an identified issue or issues; once these issues have been resolved, or the person is satisfied that as much as possible has been done to resolve them, it may be appropriate to end the advocacy relationship by mutual agreement.  On the other hand, it is also common for other issues to emerge as the advocate gets to know the person better over time, which means that the advocate may remain working alongside the person for a much longer period. In such a situation the advocate takes care that the person does not develop a dependency on the advocate and will always encourage the person to do as much for themselves as they feel able to; in other words to act on their own behalf as a self-advocate.

What if I don’t like my advocate?

Generally speaking an advocate will have been allocated to you by a experienced manager who uses her/his skill and judgement to bring about a good ‘match’.  On occasions, however, advocacy partnerships do not work out, whether through a simple lack of compatibility or because a conflict of interest on the advocate’s part comes to light subsequently.  In such cases the person does not have to continue working with the advocate or face losing the service altogether; instead, they should talk to the manager of the advocacy organisation and request another advocate.  If you think that your advocate has acted unprofessionally or behaved inappropriately you should also let the organisation’s manager know immediately.  All advocacy organisations have complaints policies which you can ask to see; you can also ask for help with pursuing a complaint if necessary.

How can I become an advocate myself?

At present there is no specific prior training required to become an advocate.  Many advocacy organisations look for ordinary, active members of their local community willing to take on the role of a volunteer advocate.  No particular skills or prior experience is required as the organisation will usually give you initial training in the knowledge and skills you need for the work.  Much more important is that your attitude and beliefs encompass tolerance, empathy, respect for each person’s dignity, a willingness to listen and to fight someone’s corner if necessary, a genuine interest in the diversity of society, and a commitment to social justice and to upholding people’s rights.  It can also be very helpful if you have personal experience of some of the issues regularly facing the people an advocate works with, eg. disability discrimination or the mental health system.

A national qualification in advocacy is shortly to be offered for the first time.  It will not be a mandatory qualification so people will be able to continue to act as advocates without it.  At this stage it is unclear what the impact of the national qualification will be on the advocacy world. It seems likely, however, that the qualification will become a pre-requisite of advocacy contracts awarded by the statutory sector.  It is also likely that most people working as paid advocates will be expected to obtain the qualification.

What kind of issues does an advocate get involved in?

Below are some examples of the cases advocates can provide help and support with:-

• Someone considering a change in their accommodation, eg. moving out of the family home, moving into a care home
• Discharge planning – leaving hospital to move back into the community or to a care or nursing home
• Attending care reviews
• Negotiating care and support plans
• Supporting someone who is detained under the Mental Health Act to ensure they are aware of their rights
• Complaints and appeals – helping someone through a formal complaints or appeal process
• Family disputes – being on someone’s side when they are in disagreement with their family
• Challenging medical assessments, eg. requesting a medication review
• Financial issues, eg. help with budgeting, debt management
• Supporting someone to obtain a Direct Payment or an individual budget
• Helping someone to get involved in a self-advocacy group
• Challenging social exclusion and discriminatory practices in the community, eg. a leisure centre whose policies make it difficult for people with learning disabilities to participate fully.