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Advocacy
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What Is Advocacy?
Advocacy seeks to influence social change by enabling those who experience dis-empowerment to have a direct say in the issues that affect their lives.
Advocacy is a process of supporting and enabling people to:
- Express their views and concerns
- Access information and services
- Defend and promote their rights and responsibilities
- Explore options and choices
Advocacy revolves around the belief in equal opportunities for everyone.
Effective advocacy can enable people to have their rights and interests given the same consideration as those of the rest of society.
Advocates and advocacy schemes work in partnership with the people they support and take their side.
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What does Valuing People say?
Valuing People said advocacy was one of the ways people with learning disabilities could get more choice and control in their lives.
It said there should be more advocacy, so that people could choose which kind of advocacy suited their needs.
Some of the different types of advocacy are:
- Self advocacy - speaking up for yourself
- Citizen advocacy - people who get to know someone with a learning disability so that they can help get their wishes understood and heard
- Short term, issue based or crisis advocacy - where people are (usually) paid to speak up for someone about a particular issue, or when they are in a crisis
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Links and Resources
Association for Real Change - http://www.arcuk.org.uk/
You can find lists of self advocacy groups in each area from the National Forum's website - http://www.nationalforum.co.uk/
The Department for Education and Skills have brought out a Self Advocacy Action Pack. You can order it by ringing 0845 602 2260 or text phone 0845 6055560 or em-mail dfes@prolog.uk.com. Quote reference SAAP.