Community Advocacy

We strongly believe everyone has the right to be heard on important issues impacting their lives. This can be particularly difficult when you face these issues alone and have other factors impacting your life such as mental or physical ill-health, a learning or physical disability and memory loss. Our Community Advocates are there to listen to you, assist in exploring your options and support in expressing and asserting your rights and wishes.

Eligibility

Our Community Advocacy service is available to support you if you are:

18 years or older

Oxfordshire resident

Without the support of friends or family

Struggling to get your voice heard

Struggling to understand professionals around you

In need of support on a particular issue impacting your life

We particularly welcome requests for support from those who are facing issues with:

Housing

Benefits

Access to healthcare

Access to other services that you are eligible for

Discrimination, harassment or victimisation

There is high demand for our service and at times we may be unable to support you if you are not facing one of the issues listed above. Whether you need support in regards to the above or in relation to other matters, do get in touch and we will check our availability or try to refer you to other services. We will always do our best to support you or refer you to a more suitable service.

Role of an Advocate

Our Community Advocates are volunteers from the local community who are specifically trained and supervised to support you on 1:1 basis. The service they offer is:

Free

Independent

Non-judgemental

Confidential

Supportive

There just for you

Our Community Advocates will:

Give time and listen

Offer support and understanding

Help you research your options

Support you to read and write letters

Assist in making telephone calls

Help you communicate using other methods (e.g. text)

Accompany you to meetings; take notes and askg questions on your behalf if helpful

Reflect with you on meetings that have happened and explore what you want do next

Our service aims to be fully accessible. If you are unable to leave your home then our Community Advocates can arrange a home visit following a risk assessment by our Programme Coordinator. Otherwise they will arrange to meet you in a public space where you feel comfortable (e.g. a community centre).

Client Feedback

"Thank you so much for all your support and help both before and throughout the appeal. I couldn't have gone through it without you. It really means so much to me I cannot express it in enough words how grateful I am to you for you being with me on the day and your understanding of my situation."

“It is incredible how a perfect stranger can walk into a meeting and change things for me. Her support was invaluable, even her presence took so much stress out of me. It was absolutely vital that I was heard at the meeting, and I was heard. What you do is incredible… massively important. I am not sure I would have turned up if my Advocate hadn’t been there”.

Advocate Role

Our Advocates are here to support you to get your voice heard when it matters.

They can help you:

Research options

Write or read a letter

Make a telephone call

Accompany you to meetings

They won’t tell you what to do or make a judgement about what you decide. It’s your wishes that will count. The support they offer is free, confidential and entirely independent.

All our Community Advocates are fully trained and supervised volunteers available to support you on the issue impacting your life. Do get in touch to find out more about our service.

Welcome to Getting Heard formerly Oxfordshire Advocacy.

For over 25 years we’ve supported Oxfordshire residents to get their voices heard on matters of importance to them; defending and safeguarding rights.

We believe everyone has the right to be heard on decisions affecting their lives and that no-one should face these decisions alone.

Our Advocates are there to listen, explore options and empower our clients to express their views and concerns, and in doing so take control of their lives.

All our services are free, independent, non-judgemental and confidential.

We welcome your feedback. If you would like to tell us what we did well, what we could do better or what you would like to see us doing differently please click on the following link to “Give Feedback”.