Advocacy Network

Inclusion North worked with advocacy organisations, NHS services and other partners.
We wanted to make advocacy better for people with a learning disability, autistic people and family carers who are in or have experience of usings mental health hospitals.
Advocacy helps people have their voice heard, understand their rights and be involved in decisions about their lives.



Easy Read Summary Full Detailed Content

What was this project about?

Inclusion North worked with advocacy organisations, NHS services and other partners.

We wanted to make advocacy better for people with a learning disability, autistic people and family carers who are in or have experience of usings mental health hospitals.

Advocacy helps people have their voice heard, understand their rights and be involved in decisions about their lives.

What did we do?

We worked with:

  • Advocacy organisations across the North East and North Cumbria.
  • NHS services.
  • People with a learning disability and autistic people.
  • Families and supporters.
  • Young people in secure mental health hospitals.

We looked at:

  • What advocacy services were available.
  • How advocates support people in hospital.
  • What makes it harder for people to leave hospital.
  • How advocacy can support people who are in seclusion or segregation.
  • How advocates can work better with families and professionals.

Creating the Advocacy Network

As part of this work, we created the North East and North Cumbria Advocacy Network.

The Network brought advocates together from across the region.

It gave advocates opportunities to:

  • Meet and learn from each other.
  • Share good practice.
  • Talk about challenges.
  • Learn about new research and policy.
  • Reflect on their advocacy work.

The Network helped advocates feel less isolated and more connected to others doing similar work.

What did we learn?

We learned that:

  • People with a learning disability and autistic people can stay in hospital for a long time.
  • People can experience restrictions such as seclusion and segregation.
  • Good advocacy can help people understand their rights.
  • Advocates need support, training and opportunities to learn from each other.
  • Families and professionals need a clear understanding of the advocacy role.

What resources did we create?

As part of this project we created:

Advocates’ Checklist

A tool to help advocates think about the support they provide and make sure they are focusing on what matters to the person.

Supervisors’ Checklist

A resource to help managers and supervisors support advocates through reflection and supervision.

Advocacy Expectations: Families

A guide to help families understand what advocacy is, what advocates do and how advocates work with the people they support.

Easy Read Guide: Advocacy in Seclusion and Segregation

An Easy Read resource explaining advocacy, people’s rights and the support available when someone is at risk of, or experiencing, seclusion or segregation.

What difference did the project make?

The project created a regional Advocacy Network and brought advocates together to share learning and improve practice.

It improved understanding of the challenges faced by people with a learning disability and autistic people in hospital.

The resources created through this work can continue to support advocates, families, professionals and people receiving advocacy support.

The project is now complete

The learning, resources and connections developed through this work will continue to support better advocacy for people with a learning disability and autistic people across the North East and North Cumbria.

 

 

Supporting Better Advocacy for people with a learning disability and autistic People in Hospital

Inclusion North has worked in partnership with advocacy organisations, NHS partners and people with lived experience to strengthen advocacy for people with a learning disability, autistic people and family carers in hospital settings.

This work was supported through funding from NHS England and involved collaboration with Cumbria, Northumberland, Tyne and Wear NHS Foundation Trust (CNTW), advocacy providers across the North East and North Cumbria and specialist partners including Investing in Children.

Understanding the Advocacy Landscape

The first phase of the project focused on understanding advocacy provision across the North East and North Cumbria for people with a learning disability and autistic people in hospital settings. Through mapping existing services and bringing together advocacy providers, NHS organisations and other stakeholders, the project identified opportunities to improve collaboration, strengthen advocacy practice and improve outcomes for people receiving support.

This work led to the development of the North East and North Cumbria Advocacy Network, creating opportunities for advocates to connect, share learning and reflect on practice.

Learning from Advocacy Practice

Building on this work, the Advocacy Network undertook a detailed review of advocacy support for people with a learning disability and autistic people in hospital, including people experiencing long admissions, seclusion and segregation. The work explored barriers to discharge, challenges within hospital systems and the role advocacy can play in supporting people to exercise their rights and influence decisions about their care and treatment.

The project highlighted the importance of strong rights based advocacy, meaningful family involvement, effective supervision and reflective practice. It also identified common challenges faced by advocates supporting people in highly restrictive settings.

Resources Produced

A number of practical resources were developed as a result of this work to support advocates, supervisors, families and people receiving advocacy support:

  • Advocates’ Checklist – a practical tool to support advocates working with learning disabled and autistic people in hospital settings, particularly those experiencing seclusion or segregation.
  • Supervisors’ Checklist – a reflective supervision resource designed to help managers and supervisors support advocates working with complex hospital based cases.
  • Advocacy Expectations: Families – a resource explaining the role, purpose and principles of advocacy and helping families understand how advocates work alongside the people they support.
  • Easy Read Guide: Advocacy in Seclusion and Segregation – an accessible resource designed to help people understand advocacy, their rights and the support available to them when they are at risk of, or experiencing, seclusion and segregation.

Impact and Legacy

The Network strengthened relationships between advocacy providers across the region, created opportunities for shared learning and reflection and generated practical resources that can continue to support high quality advocacy practice.

The learning from this work has contributed to a greater understanding of the challenges faced by learning disabled and autistic people in hospital settings and the role advocacy can play in promoting rights, reducing restrictive practices and supporting people to have greater control over decisions affecting their lives.