Celebrants & Counsellors - 🚧Under construction 🚧-

Advocacy involves providing support and guidance to individuals to help them express their views, make informed choices, and access services that meet their needs. Advocates work alongside you to ensure your voice is heard and your rights are upheld, empowering you to navigate life's challenges confidently.

Advocacy services are available to anyone who may need help making decisions about their health, care, and well-being. Whether you're facing a challenging medical diagnosis, navigating the social care system, or seeking support with educational needs, our advocates are here to help.

Case examples.

🌿SEND & Guardianship

A single parent described navigating local authority and school applications as being in a whirlpool—simultaneous drowning in admin and bureaucracy while going in circles. Her child has Special Educational Needs and disabilities (SEND)—not enough for the local authority to prioritise, though too much for the school to cope with without extra resources.

The advocate guided the parent through the process. Especially helpful was the feeling of being listened to and getting a second opinion when answers given by the local authority were vague, deliberately incomplete or "potentially" misleading. 

The advocate took a holistic approach and assessed the bigger picture. It was uncovered that the parent had no support from the father. The grandparents were young enough to help and step into a parental role if the mother was incapacitated due to poor physical or mental health or was "knocked down by the infamous number 9 bus".

The best solution was a Will that named the grandparents as preferred guardians, with a Letter of Wishes explaining the reasons why. This did not circumvent the father's rights, but it would discourage a challenge and provide crucial evidence if a court were to decide.

🌿Power Of Attorney and Advocacy Form Completion

While advising on and drafting a pair of Lasting Powers of Attorney (LPA) for a client, a need for advocacy was uncovered. The "Donor" of the LPA was a gentleman in his eighties. He was in good mental health, although he was almost housebound due to a medical condition. His wife had recently passed away, and the LPA was intended to enable his granddaughter to assist with everyday property, financial, health, and welfare decisions and transactions. 

The granddaughter felt that her grandfather should have been receiving more help. Now that she had the authority to formally represent her grandfather to request help, she wanted guidance on what was available and where to start. We introduced her to an advocate who identified that she did not need as much help as she thought, though a few hours a month helping fill in the forms was transformative to both clients.

🌿Probate and emotional support

While guiding a client through the probate process, it was clear she was struggling emotionally, though trying to cope alone. The irony was that she had a superb family and friends support network who were eager to help.

The client had always been proudly independent and had cared for her husband for years. She refused to accept similar care for herself and did not want family and friends to judge her or feel that she was not coping. In her words, she did not want "sympathy or charity."

I said that she was happy to ask for my assistance and support. She replied, "Chris, no offence, you have been very helpful, though I'm paying for help, so I'm actually helping myself."  This is when it was clear that the advocacy route was ideal for her. She could get help, as and when she needed it, on her terms, and the reasonable cost was less than her relatives would have spent on petrol visiting as often as needed.

🌿Disability and Equality with a Trust

Clients were receiving guidance from our local advocate. They have an eighteen-year-old son with learning and development needs. He was eager to work and contribute, though his condition meant that he could never work or live independently.

He has secured a job in a local shop. Though grateful for the opportunity, they were uncomfortable with some of the working conditions. They were afraid to "rock the boat" and ruin his chances, though naturally were protective and wanted a fair deal.

The advocate worked with the family and the employer and negotiated a mutually beneficial solution, with funding applications to assist.

The advocate raised the question of what their plans were for their son's support when they were no longer "here or able". They explained it was something they had meant to organise since their older daughter (now 23) was born. A referral to Fern Wills & LPAs organised Powers Of Attorney and a Will with a Vulnerable Persons Trust. This meant that neither child would not face the burden of inheriting hundreds of thousands of pounds and losing all means-tested benefits without support to guide them for the rest of their lives.