About this Support Category
Advocacy services can help children, young people, adults, parents and carers understand options, communicate concerns and take part in decisions that affect them. Support may be useful where someone is navigating SEND, EHCP processes, health and social care, disability support, mental health services, education concerns or local authority processes.
Advocacy does not always mean legal representation. Some services help people prepare for meetings, understand information, ask questions, express their views or find the right next step.
Services may include:
- Independent advocacy and rights-based support
- SEND, EHCP or education-related advocacy
- Disability, health or social care advocacy
- Mental health advocacy or support with care-related decisions
- Parent, carer or family advocacy support
- Signposting to legal, statutory or specialist advice where appropriate
If you are looking for broader local community support, visit Local Support Groups & Charities. If you need EHCP-specific help, visit EHCP Support & Advocacy.
When choosing an advocacy service, check who the service supports, whether it is independent, whether there are fees or eligibility criteria, and whether it can help with your specific issue.
Related Support Areas
Finding the Right Advocacy Service
The right advocacy service will depend on the person’s age, situation, location, support needs and the type of decision or process they are facing.
Some advocacy services focus on SEND, EHCPs, disability, health and social care, mental health, education, care reviews, complaints or local authority processes. Others may provide general information, peer support, signposting or help preparing for meetings.
This section is most relevant where families or individuals need support understanding rights, expressing views, asking questions or navigating decisions, rather than clinical therapy, tutoring or formal assessment.
Before contacting a provider, consider whether you need:
- Independent advocacy or rights-based support
- Help with SEND, EHCPs, education or school-related concerns
- Support with health, disability, mental health or social care decisions
- Help preparing for meetings, reviews, complaints or assessments
- Parent, carer, young person or adult advocacy support
- Information about eligibility, fees, location and referral routes
Find Support UK does not provide legal, clinical, financial or emergency advice. Always check provider details directly and consider speaking with a school, GP, local authority service, legal adviser or appropriate professional if you need urgent or specialist support.