Advocacy services
As a young person, parent or carer you may need an advocate to help you express your views and wishes, and help you stand up for your rights. Below you will find details of advocacy services with different types of specialism.
Barnardos are commissioned to provide independent advocacy support to Southwark’s children in need of protection, looked after children and care leavers. If a young person wants support from an advocate they can contact Barnardos themselves or ask their social worker, parent, carer, independent reviewing officer (IRO) or other trusted person to do this for them.
Freephone 0800 085 8287
Telephone: 0208 768 5058
Email: advocacy2@barnardos.org.uk
Website: www.barnardos.org.uk
The Advocacy People provide the following advocacy services for Southwark residents:
Contact details
Tel: 0330 440 9000
POhWER provide Independent Mental Capacity Advocacy (IMCA) for young people living in Southwark.
An IMCA is an advocate who has been specially trained to support people who are not able to make certain decisions for themselves and do not have family or friends who are able to speak for them. IMCAs do not make decisions and they are independent of the people who do make the decisions. An IMCA can support anyone who is over 16 years old.
Please visit the PohWER website for furhter information or download a Southwark booklet (pdf, 416kb).
CEN is a national education charity that supports children, young people, parents, families, schools, groups, organisations and communities across the country. They offer expertise in working with excluded children, children at risk of exclusion, and persistent absentees. Through our provision of free advice, support, representation, advocacy, mediation and restorative approaches, we help to restore relationships between the home and school and assist to successfully reintegrate children back into mainstream education.
www.cenlive.org
Telephone: 0207 733 0297
Our Advice and Guidance Education Appeals Specialists give independent advice and support to young people and parents of deaf children on special educational needs across the UK.
Together with the Helpline and Advice and Guidance Officers, we provide specialist advice if you disagree with a decision and want to challenge it.
What we can help you with
We provide advice to parents of deaf children and young people up to the age of 18, including:
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Challenging decisions by local authorities, including refusals to complete an statutory assessment of Special Educational Needs
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Appealing against the decision not to issue an Education, Health and Care Plan in England or a Statement in Wales or Northern Ireland
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Appealing against parts of the Education Health and Care Plan in England and Statements in Wales and Northern Ireland
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Appealing against the school named in an Education Health Care Plan in England or a Statement in Wales and Northern Ireland
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Complaints about the health or social care provision provided by a local authority
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Disability discrimination issues in education
How we’ll help you
We can help you by giving you advice and identifying what your rights are, so that you can make informed choices and feel more confident about your case.
We will help you to:
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understand what the rules are and options are, how to achieve the outcome you want and chances of success
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know what will aid your case and help you to develop the right arguments
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prepare appeal paperwork and support you in getting the right evidence and information
We aim for your case to be resolved as early as possible, but sometimes it has to be heard at an independent appeal tribunal.
If this happens we will guide you through the process and, in some cases, we may be able to provide representation when it is needed.
If we take on your case, you will have a named Advice and Guidance Education Appeals Specialist. Sometimes we use pro-bono legal volunteers to help with our cases but we will continue to have responsibility for your case.
Getting the most out of an appeal
So that we can give you the best possible support, it is helpful if you can tell us about:
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Any deadlines that you have coming up
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What has happened already
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Important letters or other papers related to your case
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If anyone else is helping you
Contacting us
If you think you may need our support, contact the Advice and Guidance Helpline who will be able to give you some advice and guidance and will see if they can refer your case to us. Click here for website
If we cannot take on your case, we will provide you with guidance and find other ways you can be supported.
Helpline: 0808 800 8880
Monday to Friday 9am – 5pm
Free from all UK landlines and major UK mobile providers
SMS: 0786 00 22 888 (SMS)
Monday to Friday 9am – 5pm
Texts are charged at your standard network rate or taken from your monthly allowance
Complete our online contact form at any time and receive a response within 10 days
Monday to Friday 9am – 5pm
Chat to a member of the Helpline team online for free
What is a parent advocate?
Parent advocate is a voluntary role for parents/carers who have had previous experience of children’s services.
Parent advocates receive training to support and advocate for other parents.
Parent advocates use their own experience of working with children’s services to help other parents express their views, understand their rights and work with professionals to receive the right support for them and their family.
What do parent advocates do?
Parent advocates support parents and carers at Child Protection Conferences (CPCs) and other meetings with children’s services and help them to:
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Express their views and concerns
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Access information and services
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Understand their rights and responsibilities
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Explore choices and options.
Because parent advocates understand what it is like to have professionals involved with their family, they can:
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Provide emotional support
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Help other parents understand the process and what to expect
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Discuss the professional report and help parents prepare for the CPC/meeting
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Ensure the parent’s views are heard at the CPC/meeting
How can I request support from a parent advocate?
If you have been notified that a CPC (Child Protection Conference) or other meeting with children’s services will be taking place and you would like to have the support of a parent advocate, you can either ask your social worker to make a referral or email parentadvocacy@southwark.gov.uk to request support.
You will need to agree for the parent advocate to have access to:
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Your contact details Information about why the CPC/meeting is taking place
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A copy of the professional report for the CPC/meeting.
Please download our leaflet (pdf, 987kb) or visit the Southwark Council website for further information.
How do I become a parent advocate?
Why not use your experience of children’s services to support other parents by volunteering as a parent advocate.
If you are interested in becoming a parent advocate or would like any further information, contact the Family Inclusion
Coordinator on 07714 073719 or email parentadvocacy@southwark.gov.uk
For more information about becoming a parent advocate, please download our leaflet (pdf, 977kb) or visit the Southwark Council website.
Just for Kids Law exist to help children and young people overcome all the difficulties they face, from problems at school and issues with immigration status to trouble with the police.
With rising deprivation and public services under pressure, our work is more important than ever.
Please get in touch on 0203 174 2279, at info@justforkidslaw.org, or make an online referral here
The Neurodiversity Family Hub provides services to Children and Young People with neurodiversity and their families, including advocacy support.
For further information:
- Click here to download a weekly planning flyer (jpg, 496kb)
- Telephone: 07703 326474
- Email: info@theneurodiversityfamilyhub.org
- Address: 11 Vine Yard, Borough, London, SE1 1QL
