Information for young people explaining advocacy and how advocates can help you to get your voice heard. Also explains how you can advocate for yourself.
We may not always feel like we’re being listened to, especially when it comes to getting treatment and support for our mental health.
There may be lots of people you need to talk to, like doctors and therapists, which can feel overwhelming. You might also find they don’t always listen to your views or involve you in decisions. This can be really upsetting and frustrating.
This is where something called advocacy can help.
Advocacy means getting support from another person to help you voice your views and stand up for your rights.
Someone who helps you do this is called your advocate.
On this page, we will help you understand advocacy and how advocates can support you with your mental health.
This page covers:
“I don’t think a lot of young people know about advocacy and it’s important to be informed about it.”
Advocates help you speak up about the things that are important to you. Different types of advocates can help you in different ways.
They are independent, which means they don’t work for the NHS, local councils or social services.
Young people we spoke to described an advocate as:
Advocates we spoke to said:
Advocates can provide different support depending on your situation and what you need help with.
Advocates can:
Advocates won’t:
You might find that different advocates can give you help for different problems. Or if your situation changes, you might get help from a different advocate. For example, if you’re a voluntary patient at first, then you’re sectioned.
“They won’t put any pressure on you to make decisions you're uncomfortable with or make decisions quicker than you're comfortable with.”
You might want to ask:
“My advocate helped me through the first stages of getting treatment for my mental illness from CAMHS... She also helped me share my views with my family and make plans so that I could better support myself.”
“I definitely felt I could be more honest because I knew they were independent. Knowing that they had my best interests in mind made it easier.”
“Figuring out what the advocate can do, and how they work, will help you decide whether you want their help. Advocates wouldn’t be in that line of work if they didn’t want to advocate for people.”
In some situations, you might have a legal right to support from an advocate. This is called statutory advocacy.
Even if you have a right to an advocate, it’s your choice whether you want their support. If you decide to turn it down at first, you can always change your mind later.
Here are some examples of when you have a legal right to an advocate:
Most advocates in psychiatric hospitals are called Independent Mental Health Advocates (IMHAs). They’re not part of the ward staff.
If you live in Wales, you have a right to an IMHA if:
If you live in England, you have a right to an IMHA if:
Some CAMHS wards in England also have advocates for voluntary patients, but it depends on what’s available in your area. Find out more in our information on general or community advocacy.
An IMHA can help you understand:
They can also help with practical things like:
If you’re in hospital, IMHAs should visit your ward regularly. You can also ask a member of the ward staff to put you in touch with them.
If you’re on a CTO, you can ask your care co-ordinator to put you in touch with an IMHA.
“The advocate would have a debrief with staff on the ward to talk about things we’ve raised and what we wanted to happen. I think the ward staff really respected our opinions that we gave to the advocate.”
If you want to make a complaint about your NHS treatment and support, you have a legal right to getting support from an advocate.
They can help you make a complaint about the people providing your care. For example, your doctor, psychiatrist or therapist.
They can help you:
If you’re in England, you can contact your local health watch. Ask them which advocacy agency provides this service in your area.
If you’re in Wales, your local Community Health Council will be able to help you.
“I spoke to the advocate regularly and we discussed problems I had with staff and whether to make a formal complaint. We ended up doing that informally.”
“Just because you don’t have a legal right to something, that doesn’t mean that your needs aren’t as great or your experience isn’t as bad.”
Here are some options of other types of advocacy support:
Some services, charities and organisations provide a type of advocacy called ‘community advocacy’. You might also hear this called ‘general advocacy’.
Community or general advocates are professional advocates. They can support you with situations or decisions when you don’t have a legal right to advocacy.
For example, you might be a voluntary patient in England and need help getting your voice heard on the ward. Or you might be experiencing problems with your care at CAMHS.
They could:
Depending on where you live, there will be different types of community or general advocacy available.
If you live in England, you could contact VoiceAbility, POhWER or Barnardo’s. These are charity organisations that offer free advocacy services.
If you live in Wales, you could contact the National Youth Advocacy Service or Barnardo’s.
You could also ask your doctor if they know of any local advocacy services.
Peer advocates are young people who might have been through something similar to you in the past. Or they might have a similar mental health problem.
Peer advocates can use their knowledge and experience to support you with any problems you’re going through.
For example, if they’ve experienced a similar problem to you, they can talk you through how they handled it.
It can feel comforting to speak to people who understand you. You might find it rewarding to share your experiences with them too.
You can find more information from your local Mind.
“It’s good to have someone who has been through the same things as you.”
Some charities and organisations that support specific groups may also be able to offer you advocacy services. For example:
You won’t have to pay for any of these services.
If you can’t find a community or peer advocate, read our information on family, friends or carers as advocates and being your own advocate.
“My advice for other young people working with an advocate would be to really embrace any activities or tasks that your advocate brings you to do. Even if these activities seem like they won’t help.”
An advocate will usually work for an advocacy agency.
You can find out about advocacy services in your area by:
You could also ask for help from:
If you’re not happy with your advocate, you could try speaking to them first and letting them know how you feel.
If that doesn’t work, you could:
Family members and carers can help to get your voice heard in some situations, but they aren’t the same as professional advocates.
The support they can offer you will be different to what professional advocates can.
It’s helpful to consider the differences in how professional advocates or family and carers can support you.
You might find that it’s easier to:
Your family members or carers:
If you would like a family member or carer to help you get your voice heard, have a chat with them first.
Try to explain the type of support you would like and how they can help you. They might need some time to think about whether they can help you in the way you’ve asked.
Friends and partners can help you get your voice heard, but aren’t the same as professional advocates. The support they can offer you will be different to what professional advocates can.
Even if they have experienced something similar to you:
If you’d like them to support you to get your voice heard, you can ask them how they feel about it. Try to respect whatever answer they give you.
Remember: family members, carers, friends and partners can still be involved and help you in other ways.
Whatever you choose, you deserve to have someone stand up for you.
“Getting support from another person can be really beneficial, even if it’s not a professional advocate.”
Or local council. This is the group of people responsible for certain services in your area, like social care and education.
Visit our full treatment and support glossaryBeing sectioned means that you’re kept in hospital under the Mental Health Act 1983.
There are different types of sections, each with different rules to keep you safe and give you treatment.
The length of time that you can be kept in hospital depends on which section you are on.
See our page on being sectioned for more information.
Visit our full treatment and support glossaryYou're a voluntary patient when you, or someone who looks after you, agree for you to stay in hospital to get treatment and support for your mental health. This is sometimes called being an informal patient.
See our page on being a voluntary patient for more information.
Visit our full treatment and support glossaryThese are services that support young people with their mental health. You may also hear them called Children and Young People’s Mental Health Services (CYPMHS).
See our page on CAMHS for more information.
In some situations, you have a legal right to support from an advocate. This is called statutory advocacy.
For example, if you’re sectioned in hospital, you have the right to an Independent Mental Health Advocate (IMHA).
See our page on advocacy for more information about statutory advocacy.
Visit our full treatment and support glossaryThis is a hospital where you go to get treatment and support for your mental health.
Visit our full treatment and support glossaryAn IMHA can help you understand your rights under the Mental Health Act 1983 and any medical treatment you’re having or might be given. They can also help you with practical things, like attending meetings or seeing your medical notes and records.
See our page on advocacy for more information about IMHAs.
Visit our full treatment and support glossaryThis describes the area of the hospital you're staying in. You may also hear it called a unit.
Visit our full treatment and support glossaryThis is when you’ve been discharged from hospital but you still need to follow certain rules. For example, taking medication or seeing your doctor. If you become unwell, you could be brought back to hospital.
You can only be put on a CTO if you’ve been on certain sections, like 3 or 37.
See our page on being sectioned for information about the different sections.
Visit our full treatment and support glossaryThis is a law that allows people to be sectioned if they have a mental health problem and need treatment. It applies to both England and Wales.
Visit our full treatment and support glossaryThis is a special court that you can apply to when you’re sectioned. The Tribunal decides whether your section can end. They can also give advice about things like hospital leave, hospital transfers and being put on a Community Treatment Order (CTO).
In England, the Tribunal is called the Mental Health Tribunal. In Wales, the Tribunal is called the Mental Health Review Tribunal for Wales.
When you have a Tribunal hearing, three people make the decisions. These include:
This is your main point of contact if you’re having ongoing treatment and support for your mental health. They should keep in close contact with you and answer any questions you may have.
Visit our full treatment and support glossaryThis is a medical doctor that specialises in mental health (psychiatry). Psychiatrists can:
This is a trained professional who runs or supervises your therapy. Therapists help you explore how you’re thinking, feeling and behaving, and what can help you in the future.
There are different types of training and education for therapists. This means they all have different titles, like psychologist, therapist, counsellor or psychiatrist.
Visit our full treatment and support glossaryThis information was published in February 2022. We will revise it in 2025.
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