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POhWER Care Act Advocacy

The Care Act places a duty on local authorities to involve people as much as possible when their care and support is being assessed or reviewed or when they may be subject to safeguarding concerns.

A person will be entitled to have an independent advocate under the Care Act if:

• They are deemed to have “substantial difficulty” being fully involved in the process. This means they would have difficulty understanding, remembering, using or weighing up relevant information or in communicating their views, wishes or feelings
• There is no appropriate person available to support and represent the person’s wishes

An advocate can be involved when the local authority is:
• Carrying out a needs assessment
• Carrying out a child’s needs assessment
• Carrying out a carer’s assessment, child’s carer’s assessment or a young carer’s assessment
• Preparing a support plan or reviewing a care and support plan
• Making safeguarding enquiries or arranging for a Safeguarding Adults Review
Advocacy under the Care Act