What is advocacy?
Advocacy
Advocacy is when you get support to have your say.
is when you get support to have your say.
Advocacy support can help to give you the confidence and ability to speak up about things that are important in your life.
Advocacy is about helping people to communicate their wishes.
An
advocate
An advocate is a person who can help you have your say. An advocate can speak up for you if you find it hard.
can help to support you to speak out about your
rights
Rights are the things everyone should be allowed to do like have a say, or go to school.
.
Advocates:
- do not speak on behalf of people with a 
learning disability
A learning disability is to do with the way someone's brain works. It makes it harder for someone to learn, understand or do things.
 – they cannot make decisions for a person with a learning disability or offer their advice or opinions. - can help you to communicate your views, needs and wishes, and to make your thoughts and opinions heard.
- can support people to develop skills, confidence, and
knowledge
Knowledge is knowing a lot about something.
, and make sure they are being treated fairly.
Advocates help people to:
- access information and services
- be
involved
Involved is being included in something or taking part in something.
in decisions about people’s lives - explore choices and options
- speak out about issues that matter to them.
How advocacy services work?
Mencap do not offer an advocacy service.
However, every 
local authority
A local authority is also called a
council
A council is also called a local authority. They are a group of people who make decisions about some of the things in the area where you live. These include: schools,
social care
Social care means the services that give care and support to people who need it.
(support for people), parks and dustbin collection.
. They are a group of people who make decisions about some of the things in the area where you live like schools, social care (support for people), parks and dustbin collection.
 pays for advocacy services to support people who need help making their voice heard.
Advocacy services are provided by an advocate who is independent, and who is not part of your family or one of your friends.
Being independent means, they are there to represent wishes without giving their own opinion and without representing anyone else’s views.
An advocate may support you in other ways, like writing letters for you.
There are different types of advocacy:
Instructed advocacy
If you feel that you cannot share your views, you can tell the advocate what you would like them to say and do. The advocate can then work with you to understand what you need, and then support you by clearly putting your points across.
Non-instructed advocacy
If someone does not have the capacity to tell an advocate what they want them to do, the advocate will use other ways to try to understand the individual and their situation. The advocate can then make sure the person is not missing out on things that we all take for granted.
If somebody cannot make a decision for themselves because they do not have the capacity at that time, an advocate can make sure their best interests are represented.
What advocacy is available?
Independent Care Act Advocacy can help you to understand and effectively navigate Care Act processes, such as assessments, care planning,
safeguarding
Keeping people safe from being hurt, abused, or neglected is called Safeguarding.
and reviews.
Each Local Authority in England pays for Care Act Advocacy.
If you, or a loved one might need support which comes under the Care Act (2014), ask your Local Authority who offers Care Act Advocacy in your area.
This information can usually be found on their
website
A website is a page you can go to on the internet like Google or YouTube.
.
An IMCA is an Independent
Mental Capacity
Mental capacity means being able to make a decision when it needs to be made.
Advocate - an advocate that can offer support to people using the Mental Capacity Act (2005). They can act on behalf of people aged 16 or over, that lack the capacity to make decisions at that time.
A Relevant Person’s Paid
Representative
A representative is also called a rep. A representative is someone who speaks up for everyone in their group or team.
is a usually a qualified advocate that offers support to people who are deprived of their liberty under a Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS).
IMHA is an Independent Mental Health Advocate that can offer support to people using the Mental Health Act (1983). They can act on behalf of some people that are detained or liable to be detained under the Mental Health Act.
If you or your loved one have received inadequate care or treatment in hospital, you have the right to
complain
Complain is when you say you are not happy about something.
using NHS Complaints Advocacy.
An Independent Sexual Violence Adviser can offer specialist person centred support to people that have experienced sexual assault or rape. Although they are not statutory
advocates
Advocates means supporting or speaking up for someone or something.
, they are available in most Local Authority areas in England. To get support from an ISVA, you do not have to have reported anything to the police, and they will not make you report it if you do not want to.
Healthwatch
Healthwatch are a group that listens to what people think about health and social care services in your area. There is a local Healthwatch group in every area of England.
supports people and communities to feedback on and challenge how health and social care services are being run in their area. Healthwatch gather people's views and experiences of health and care services and write reports and recommendations to the people who pay for the services to be delivered.
Instructions about how to share your story with Healthwatch.
An Independent Domestic Violence Advocate works with survivors of
domestic abuse
Domestic abuse is when a member of your family or someone you are in a relationship with,
threatens
To threaten someone is to say you are going to do something bad to them if they don’t do what you want them to do.
, hurts or abuses you.
to listen and advocate on their behalf. An IDVA works with survivors to help make a personal safety plan to reduce the risk to the survivor and their children.