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  1. Winner of the Outstanding Advocate Award 2023

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    Our awesome Independent Advocate, Pauline, has won the award for Outstanding Advocate at this year’s National Advocacy Awards. 

    Below is the nomination for the award (written by Leanne Hignett, our Services Director) which gives you an insight into the support that was given by Pauline to Milly.

    You can watch the video of Pauline’s nomination here https://youtu.be/xiJdj1OPtcA

    I am thrilled to nominate Pauline for this award in recognition of her unwavering dedication, fearless passion, and steadfast commitment to advocacy since 2007. If I had to pick one (of many) scenarios in which to highlight Pauline’s ability to overcome adversity to make a real difference to another person’s life, it would be in the case of Milly.

    Pauline supported Milly on an advocacy journey like no other, beginning as her community advocate over 10 years ago before going on to support with a range of statutory advocacy approaches, many of which Pauline delivered simultaneously.

    It was strongly suspected that Milly had high functioning autism and, having spent most of her life in the care of her mother, her passing meant that Milly sadly found herself living alone in the decommissioned council flat they had once shared. Milly desperately wanted support and was articulate when contacting other agencies however, her diagnosis of agoraphobia meant she would not leave her home and would rarely let others in. This led health and social care services to dismiss Milly’s calls for help, as they simply felt she was choosing not to engage.

    Pauline saw beyond this, recognising that Milly’s conditions were likely having an impact on her executive functioning. Milly began sharing with Pauline and her GP that she was experiencing heavy bleeding and pain. Pauline recognised that the way other professionals were dismissing Milly meant that she was going a prolonged amount of time without investigation or treatment. Pauline tenaciously battled with other agencies to urge them to adapt their standard ways of working to ensure Milly’s situation was escalated. Pauline also shared Milly’s communication needs, using this to promote the increased engagement professionals could have with Milly if they altered their approach. Pauline’s tenacity eventually resulted in Milly’s admission to hospital and, following a series of tests, Milly was sadly diagnosed with cervical cancer.

    Milly’s expressed wishes were conflicting with her views and hopes for the future. Despite stating she did not want to die, Milly refused to consider any treatment for her cancer. Pauline pressed for a specialist to assess Milly’s capacity, someone who would consider her complex communication style. Pauline managed to do this by advocating the views Milly had shared herself, relaying a statement Milly made that,

    “My brain doesn’t always work – it’s like I am working with only half a brain. I misunderstand things. I get things wrong, and I need someone to help me make the right decisions.”

    As a result, a specialist assessment was commissioned and Milly was found to lack capacity regarding the decision to have treatment for her cancer. Unfortunately, the time that had elapsed meant that there was no longer an option to pursue treatment. Pauline began supporting Milly to advocate for where she wanted to spend her final weeks and eventually Milly moved to a hospice by the seaside she had always loved to visit as a child. The hospice were immensely grateful for the support Pauline provided during the transition, as this enabled them to provide greater person-centred care to Milly in her final weeks.”

    “Pauline provided amazing support for one of our patients who was admitted for end-of-life care. From the very moment the patient was admitted Pauline was actively seeking out ways to work with us and support the patient. Pauline had known the patient for many years, and we found it invaluable that she knew how to best communicate with her and what her preferences were. The patient told us how much Pauline had done for her, how much she trusted her and wanted her to be fully involved in supporting her with her decisions and wishes.  Pauline’s involvement helped the team here to fulfil some of the patients end of life wishes which was so important, she provided a great deal of emotional and psychological support, and even after the patient died, Pauline was advocating for her wishes to be upheld. Pauline was pivotal to the care this patient received and her experiences at the end of her life, she was amazing.”

    Unfortunately, where a local authority arranges a public funeral, it does so at minimal expense. This meant that despite Milly’s dying wish to be buried in her hometown, a decision was made for a non-attendance cremation with no service. This was unacceptable to Pauline, who took it upon herself to advocate for Milly’s wishes after her passing. Pauline tenaciously challenged the council’s decision, going as far as to make a FOI request to enquire under what circumstances the council utilised its power to make discretionary decisions about public funerals. Pauline’s challenge did not go unnoticed, and Milly received a beautiful service and burial, which her advocate and other professionals devotedly attended.

    Following her death, Milly’s story was heard by the national safeguarding group of NHS England. Both Pauline and the remainder of the MDT were nominated and subsequently won an NHS Safeguarding Star Award. However, knowing Milly’s views on the matter and not wanting to jeopardise her independence, Pauline decided to decline the award. Though I have no doubt she deserved the recognition.”

    Some of the additional feedback given for Pauline and her support of Milly …

    Here at Advocacy Focus we are so proud to have had 3 of our advocates be chosen as winners over the years for this highly regarded award.

  2. St Helens ‘All-Age Advocacy Hub’ announcement

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    We are pleased to announce that we will be delivering the St Helens Adults Advocacy Hub from the 1st April 2023.

    Advocacy Focus already provides the Children’s Rights, Advocacy and Independent Visitor service in St Helens, which means we can now provide seamless advocacy support to people of all ages. The service will be known as ‘The All-Age Advocacy Hub’, as we will be able to follow the people of St Helens through all stages of life, without having to pass people on to different services or providers for their support needs. This will be especially beneficial to young adults who transition from Children’s Social Care to Adult Social Care. It will allow them to be supported by advocates who are familiar to them and already know the issues they are facing.

    So, what does this mean for St Helens? We will be delivering a range of non-statutory and statutory advocacy to ensure as many people are able to get the support they need. We have a team of multi-skilled Independent Advocates who can support people across all statutory advocacy provisions. This allows for a person-led service, and no matter what the issue or strand of advocacy people need, we have someone on the team who is equipped and ready to support.

    As part of our extended offer, we will also provide student placements, work experience programmes, apprenticeships, and volunteering opportunities. This will help us to sustain and deliver meaningful services and provide unique opportunities for the residents of St Helens that are seeking employment or want to get involved at a community level.

    At Advocacy Focus our starting point is always self-advocacy and helping people to become their own best advocate. We know that people are the experts in their own lives and we help support them to live the lives they want to live. Therefore, to give the people of St Helens the best possible chance of being seen, heard and listened to when it comes to making important decisions about their lives; we will be providing free training, tools and resources via our website: www.advocacyfocus.org.uk

    “We already have a brilliant working relationship with the people and professionals of St Helens and cannot wait to provide a seamless all age advocacy hub, for all the communities’ advocacy needs. Advocacy Focus has been providing high quality advocacy for over 25 years and we are passionate about positive outcomes for people going through challenging health and social care matters. We are a free and independent service, and we are on your side. We cannot wait to extend our services in St Helens and help anyone we work with to achieve the life outcomes they are hoping for.”

    Justine Forster – Chief Executive Officer, Advocacy Focus

  3. Advocacy Focus successfully secure Salford Children’s Rights, Advocacy and Independent Visitors contract.

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    We are delighted to announce that we have successfully secured the Salford Children’s Rights, Advocacy and Independent Visitors contract. The service will launch on the 1st April 2023 and will run for the next five years. Our Advocates and Independent Visitors cannot wait to work with the children and young people of Salford.

    Advocacy Focus will provide support to children and young people who are known to Childrens Social Care. For these children, it can feel like decisions are being made about them, without them, but Advocacy Focus will be there to make sure that important decisions are being made in partnership with children and young people. Advocacy helps people to understand their rights, put forward their views and wishes, and explore the different options that are open to them.

    As part of the bidding process, Salford Childrens Social Care worked with children and young people to identify and select the best organisation to support them. Which makes our team particularly proud to win this contract and deliver meaningful advocacy for the children and young people of Salford. Our team of Advocates will help put the power back into the hands of young people, promote their voice when they feel unheard, and help them to understand their situation.

    We also promise to offer wider benefits for the children and young people of Salford. We will be going into schools to support careers advice and talk to young people about working in the voluntary, community and social enterprise sectors and helping them to prepare for their next steps.

    So committed are we to increasing the life choices of young people leaving care, we will be ensuring that those using our service can seek support from someone with lived experience. That’s why we have pledged to offer two Salford care leavers an apprenticeship with Advocacy Focus, so that they can help others make sense of their situation. We will also provide business placement opportunities for young people with additional needs to help them begin their journey into the world of work.

    It is essential that children and young people in care are supported by someone independent from health and social care services.  Advocacy Focus has been delivering advocacy services for 25 years and we know that the more we help young people to be their own best advocate, the better chance they will have as adults to live independently and thrive.

    “We’re delighted to be chosen as the new provider for Salford Children’s Rights, Advocacy, and Independent Visitor Service, especially as the children and young people of Salford were involved in the selection process. We cannot wait to deliver our services and work with children and young people in Childrens Social Care and help them to achieve better life outcomes, whatever they may be facing or dealing with.  Advocacy is all about being seen, heard and listened to and our service will do just that for the young people of Salford, helping them stay in control of their own lives.”

    Justine Forster – Chief Executive Officer, Advocacy Focus

  4. Advocacy Focus Once Again Wins QPM Award!

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    The Quality Performance Mark (QPM) is the only quality mark for organisations that deliver Independent Advocacy. The National Development Team for Inclusion (NDTi) is responsible for assessing and awarding organisations with QPM status. Being awarded the QPM is confirmation that an organisation is delivering the gold standard of advocacy- you are amongst the crème de la crème of advocacy services. It is widely recognised and respected across the advocacy sector. It demonstrates that an organisation is delivering advocacy in line with the Advocacy Charter. Here at Advocacy Focus we pride ourselves on quality, so much so it is included as one of our organisation’s core values. So, achieving QPM status is a huge deal for us!

    The purpose of a QPM assessment is to make sure that our advocacy policies are up to date, we are following best practice, and all our delivery is in line with the QPM standards that are required to gain and hold the award. The QPM assessment gives us an opportunity to showcase to an industry expert all the work that we do, who then examines how we are delivering our advocacy services in line with the QPM standards and the Advocacy Charter. We’re then given useful feedback that we can use to shape and develop our services further.

    We have proudly held QPM for many years, and every 3 years we undergo further assessment to hold our QPM status, which ensures that we continue to meet the standard. We recently underwent our assessment for QPM once again and are happy to confirm that we achieved our QPM status once more!

    Some of the glowing feedback from NDTi demonstrates exactly how we are delivering quality advocacy services in line with the principles of the Advocacy Charter:

    Clarity of Purpose – “Advocates had an impressive understanding of the importance of being clear about their roles, remits, and professional boundaries and how to communicate the purpose of advocacy to people who use their services and to professionals. They were clear about the purpose of all the types of advocacy they offer. This was reflected throughout the organisation.”

    Independence – “Advocates and Mangers clearly prioritise their independence from service providers, funders, commissioners, and other stakeholders. They gave excellent examples of how they maintain their independence in practice and how important it is to demonstrate independence to people who use their services.”

    Person-led and empowerment – “This is an outstanding area of good practice. Advocacy Focus supports self-advocacy with toolkits and other resources, such as the Justice for LB Toolkit available on the website. Advocates were clear about ways in which they work in a person-centred way and how they support people to get their voices heard. Advocacy Focus has co-produced excellent easy read guides and documents. There was a clear commitment to encouraging self-advocacy wherever possible. Advocacy Focus has a commitment to learning from people who use the services, for example using feedback from its RPR service to create a new RPR fact sheet.”

    Accessibility – “Easy read options and a very clear website ensure that services are accessible, along with use of translations and interpreters when needed. The website has an excellent video: ‘What is advocacy and how can we help you to self-advocate?”

    Supporting Advocates – “This is another outstanding area of excellence at Advocacy Focus. Staff report feeling very well supported and staff wellbeing is clearly prioritised. There is an open, trusting culture of honesty, peer support, managerial support, enquiry and reflection, teamwork, personal and organisational development. Staff reported manageable workloads, autonomy, and good communication. Staff and volunteers appreciate outstanding and positive leadership around wellbeing.”

    As part of the assessment process the QPM assessor speaks to people who have worked closely with Advocacy Focus, including people our Independent Advocates have supported, and external professionals in the health and social care sector. Some of the wonderful feedback we received from our stakeholders included:

    “My advocate understood my needs and wishes, we had rapport straight away…I’d still be there now if it wasn’t for them. There’s nothing they could have done better, she was superb. The outcome was exactly what I wanted, largely due to the advocate.” – Person who has used services

    “She had a lovely manner, very skilled, very person centred.” – Person who has used services

    “I could always get in touch (with the advocate), messages were always passed on and responded to. The whole services was excellent, really welcoming, nothing was too much trouble.” – Person who has used services

    “(The advocate was) helpful, listened to me and what I was dealing with, help with paperwork, even though the outcome was not what I wanted, her help was phenomenal, she went above and beyond. The advocate and the company, no-one else has ever helped me like that.” – Person who has used services.

    “They provide a very clear voice for the individual, their reports are very thorough with detailed evidence of what the person is saying, next steps and any action.” – Health and social care professional

    “Advocates create and maintain positive working relationships whilst also being very forceful on the side of the child or young person they are working with.” – Health and social care professional

    “The quality of their reports is excellent. They are like a dog with a bone, they are persistent… I have confidence that they do the job properly, they know DOLS inside out. They have the confidence to challenge where they need to. 10 out of 10.” – Health and social care professional

    Hearing feedback like this makes us so proud to have an amazing team who are dedicated to going above and beyond to deliver quality advocacy worthy of the QPM award. Here’s to another 3 years of being a QPM awarded advocacy provider!

    We are completely humbled by the glowing assessment, and we have big plans for the charity over the next three years, with a continued commitment to young people and adults across the North, helping people live the lives they want to live!

  5. Do you want to become a Trustee?

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    Are you interested in becoming a Trustee of a leading advocacy charity and Top Employer in Mind’s Workplace Wellbeing Index, 2022? We are especially keen to hear from people within underrepresented groups.

    Over 12 months we supported 6381 people with complex advocacy issues.

    What skills could you help us with?

    • Lived experience of advocacy or health and social care issues
    • Equity, Diversity and Inclusion
    • Fundraising and business development
    • Local government policy and procurement

    Who we are:

    • We have provided person-led advocacy across the North of England since 1998
    • Our advocates support people to understand their rights, options and enable people to make informed decisions about their health and social care.
    • Simply put: we help people live the lives they want to live.

    If you are interested in becoming a Trustee or would like more information, please email admin@advocacyfocus.org.uk

  6. Menopause Focus

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    We have the first two volumes of our Menopause Focus series available to download now!

    Volume 1: What is Menopause? – covers a range of topics from an introduction to what menopause is, symptoms, support groups and more! Download the booklet by clicking here!

    Volume 2: Menopause and the Workplace Guide – includes tips for managing menopause at work and how to support someone at work who is going through menopause. Download the booklet by clicking here!

  7. Liberty Protection Safeguards

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    In March, the government launched a consultation on various documents that will support the implementation of the Liberty Protection Safeguards. This included a new draft Mental Capacity Act Code of Practice and new draft Regulations. These documents have been long-awaited since the Mental Capacity (Amendment) Act (which introduced the Liberty Protection Safeguards) was passed in 2018. It was hoped that these documents would put ‘flesh on the bones’ of the legislation and give more detail about how the Liberty Protection Safeguards (LPS) will work in practice. 

    What are the Liberty Protection Safeguards (LPS)? 

    If someone is deprived of their liberty through their care or treatment arrangements, and they lack capacity to consent to the arrangements, this must be authorised by a legal framework to ensure the person’s human rights are protected. Currently, this is authorised via the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) if the person lives in a care home or is in hospital, or by the Court of Protection if the person lives in the community. LPS will replace the DoLS and will apply to all settings, so there will be no need to apply to the Court of Protection for an authorisation. LPS will also apply to people aged 16+.  

    What have we been doing during the consultation? 

    As well as preparing and submitting our consultation response, Advocacy Focus have been busy engaging with our stakeholders and colleagues from other advocacy providers. We have chaired a nationwide LPS subgroup of advocacy providers, facilitating discussion of the main talking points arising from the consultation documents. We have also signed up to a joint advocacy sector response with around 30 other advocacy providers. 

    We co-hosted a webinar with Kate Mercer Training and NDTI to engage the wider advocacy community with the consultation. This involved looking at some of the key provisions of the draft Code of Practice and Regulations relating to advocacy and the IMCA role (and the consultation questions relating to these) and thinking about some of the key points advocacy providers may wish to make when responding to the consultation. Neil Allen from 39 Essex Chambers also kindly attended and spoke about the good points and concerns about advocacy provision as set out in the draft Code of Practice.  

    We have attended meetings held by the Department of Health and Social Care to discuss our feedback on the role of the Independent Mental Capacity Advocate (IMCA) and the Appropriate Person.  

    We have also been discussing our thoughts and main feedback points from the consultation with our commissioners, making them aware of the changes and the level of funding that is likely to be required in order to facilitate the increased number of advocates that will be needed to implement the LPS as envisaged by the draft Code of Practice. 

    What points did we make in our consultation response? 

    In our own consultation response, we made several points relating to the provision of advocacy and how the Code and Regulations address this. We raised concerns around how neither the Regulations nor the Code set a minimum required frequency for Independent Mental Capacity Advocates (IMCAs) to visit the person deprived of their liberty (which could lead to the quality of the IMCA service becoming a ‘postcode lottery’). Further, the regulations do not give an IMCA the right to meet with the person deprived of their liberty when the IMCA is supporting their Appropriate Person – we feel that this reduces the current 39D IMCA role where the IMCA provides an additional safeguard to the person when being supported by an unpaid representative (generally family or friends). We referenced several parts of the draft Code of Practice where the role of an IMCA is incorrectly stated – e.g. IMCAs are not mediators, nor do they express a view about what is best for the person or what the person should do. 

    We looked at the figures estimated by the impact assessment and compared those to the current trends we see in our referral rates under DoLS. We also considered the increase in the level of responsibility in the role of the Appropriate Person (that will be taken on by a family or friend) compared to the current unpaid Relevant Person’s Representative role (RPR) and questioned whether as many people would be prepared to take on this role as the impact assessment states. We therefore made the point that the actual demand for advocacy would likely be higher than estimated by the impact assessment. We have made the point that if LPS is to be as person-centred as the draft Code of Practice envisages, it is vitally important that sufficient funding is provided to advocacy providers to train their existing advocates in LPS but also to recruit and train new advocates. 

    We also share the concerns raised by many others throughout the consultation period regarding the definition of deprivation of liberty as set out in the draft Code of Practice. We raised concerns that if the definition is applied as set out in the draft Code and example scenarios, lots of people who currently have a DoLS authorisation would not be eligible for an LPS authorisation, leaving lots of people heavily restricted but without any safeguards or support in place to challenge this. 

    What happens next? 

    The government will publish their response to the consultation – they have said that they will do this in Winter, so this could be late this year or early next year. There is not yet a date set for the implementation of LPS. We will continue to monitor for updates and continue to hold meetings of the advocacy LPS sub-group. 

  8. “Undercover Hospital: Patients at Risk” blog post

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    The BBC Panorama documentary “Undercover Hospital: Patients at Risk” which aired this week, clearly showed how some mental health services are still systemically failing people who need their help and support at a time of crisis. The mental health unit highlighted in the documentary is now the subject of a criminal investigation, after an undercover reporter exposed the unit’s degrading treatment and abuse towards the patients. There is still a misconception that abuse does not occur within professional services, especially since the Winterbourne View hospital abuse scandal in 2011. However, Panorama exposed a toxic culture and abusive environment within the secure Edenfield Unit in Prestwich, where detained patients were being treated in an inhumane and degrading way. Patients were being subjected to physical, emotional, and psychological abuse, instead of receiving the necessary therapeutic care and treatment to aid their recovery and subsequent discharge from the hospital.

    Whilst we have no knowledge of what services or organisations may have been available to the patients within Edenfield, as an independent advocacy provider, Advocacy Focus trains our team to adopt a degree of professional curiosity. To be tuned into their gut feelings, to question, challenge and to think that if something doesn’t feel right, it usually isn’t. Any advocacy provider working within health and social care must have a presence within mental health hospitals as a priority, to help safeguard, listen to and inform people of their rights. People’s voices should never be silenced just because they are experiencing a mental health crisis. Any concerns raised should be investigated to the full extent, and the abuse stopped and prevented from ever occurring again. If patients on the wards and their families know what their rights are and who they can turn to if things go wrong, then they are bound to have better outcomes, feel safe and move towards recovery and their return home.

    If you have a friend or loved one receiving treatment currently from a mental health facility, or something like this has happened to you, you can find out more about Independent Advocacy and how we can help. Advocacy Focus is independent of the local authority, health and social care services and is on your side. You are not alone and there is help available. If you need more information about the services our charity provides, you can find it here. Independent Mental Health Advocacy (IMHA) – Advocacy Focus

    If you have been affected by the programme and are struggling to understand and process the events you have witnessed, then please reach out to Advocacy Focus for advocacy support or for help accessing further support from other local organisations. You can call us on 0300 323 0965, or reach out via our live chat facility at www.advocacyfocus.org.uk

  9. Positive Voices Conference

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    Last week some of our Advocates travelled down to Birmingham for the Positive Voices conference! This post is a collection of images from their Twitter takeover! If you want to read through the Twitter thread – just click here!

  10. World Refugee Day 2022

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    Today is #WorldRefugeeDay and it’s hard to think of a period when the international refugee regime has felt more under threat.

    It isn’t just the government which is directly attacking the legal principles which were set out to protect them, across the world refugees are demonised and discriminated against.

    Countries like Greece continue to operate illegal pushback operations which have already cost thousands of lives. The UK continues to enact inhumane policies, such as tagging and forced deportation. Denmark is attempting to follow suit and build on existing policies of confiscating asylum seekers’ valuables.

    In France both asylum seekers and those seeking to help them routinely face attacks from the authorities. Italy has seen a concerted attempt to criminalise humanitarian assistance for those crossing the Mediterranean.

    There are countless more examples, and it’s easy to feel bleak and helpless in the face of it all. We have however seen that hope shines eternal. The proposed deportation flight to Rwanda on Tuesday was stopped thanks to the efforts of diligent lawyers and campaigners. Communities have stood up, as in Peckham, to prevent immigration enforcement removing people.

    #WorldRefugeeDay is all about 

    • Protecting those who so desperately need it. 
    • Amplify their voices and 
    • Continuing to campaign for their rights. 

    Show we stand #TogetherWithRefugees, because together we can turn the tide and create a more welcoming world.

    Here are some useful links if you, or someone you know, needs support:

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