Advocacy for social care customers

When you have a problem, or you are dealing with changes in your own life, or the life of someone you care for, it can be difficult to understand your options, decide what's best, and make sure your views are listened to.

That is why there are independent people who can help you understand your rights and the choices open to you, and help you express your views, preferences and decisions. These people are called advocates and the service they provide is called advocacy.

Some advocacy services have specialist knowledge of the way certain services work - such as long-term care or hospitals - but an advocate will not belong to the organisation providing the service.

An advocate is someone who is there to support you and what you want to say.

What can advocacy help with?

You can use an advocacy service for any situation where you want someone to help you think through the choices you need to make. Your advocate will also support you to put your views across once you have decided what you want to do.

Here are just some examples of situations where an advocate might be able to help:

• You are at the point of needing care services or long-term healthcare, or your needs are changing
• You are being abused or bullied 
• You have a problem with your treatment in the mental health system
• You want to challenge decisions that other people have made about your care services
• You have a problem that you cannot solve with a service such as housing, utilities (gas, electricity or water), neighbour nuisance, or residential care.

Advocacy cannot always completely solve problems for you, but an advocate can help you make yourself heard and help you make sure your rights are respected and you get what you are entitled to.

Will an advocate tell me what to do?

No. An advocate's job is to explain your options - not to make choices or decisions for you. In fact, advocacy should allow you to do more for yourself, as you will understand more about the choices open to you. Advocacy is based on your needs and wishes, not those of the advocate or anyone providing services.

How much does advocacy cost?

Most advocacy services are free. If there is a cost, you will be told about this at the start.

How can I get advocacy?

There are a number of places in Manchester where you can get advocacy support. But the best one for you depends on the sort of problem you want help with, where you live, and any particular needs you have.

You can get in touch with the Adults and Children's Social Care Contact Service to ask about advocacy services.

You can download this information as a leaflet for printing, if you need to.