Supporting People with Learning Disabilities.
Become a Volunteer Advocate: help parents with a learning disability express themselves, and understand important information regarding their children.
A Volunteer Advocate plays an incredibly important role when it comes to supporting a parent with a learning disability. By having an advocate, parents have a much better chance at being able to navigate difficult processes about their children and treated fairly throughout.
As a Volunteer Advocate, you will support the parent in meetings/appointments by making sure they understand the information that is being shared, that reasonable adjustments are made in line with the parent’s learning disability, that the parent has the opportunity to share their views and feel like their voice is heard, as well as talk through the options the parent may have and discuss the consequences of each option so the parent can make an informed decision.
Depending on the family’s situation an Advocate Volunteer may need to.
- Support parents to explore options, make informed choices and make positive changes to reduce the risk of their child being placed on a child protection plan.
- Advocate for parents at Child in Need meetings and supporting parents to have their voice heard.
- Support parents to engage with professionals and to understand the concerns they have (if any).
- Read through professional reports with the parent, ensuring they understand the content and recording their views and wishes.
- Support the parent to communicate with their children’s school or attend school meetings.
- Advocate for parents to receive the support they need to appropriately care for their children.
- Advocate for parents when they are working with other support agencies.
- Ensure that parents can understand, implement, and maintain changes suggested by Family Support Workers.
If the child is no longer in the parent’s care, then a volunteer Advocate may need to.
- Advocate and support a parent in LAC (Looked After Children) reviews.
- Advocate and support the parent(s) at contact arrangement meetings with Social Workers or other professionals.
- Support the parents to engage with the local authority.
- Read professional reports with the parents and record their views and wishes in response to the reports.
- Support parents by presenting options allowing them to make positive choices and overcome the wider issues in their lives such as debt, domestic violence, and harassment.
Full training will be available to understand more about learning disabilities, advocacy, as well as the potential processes parents are affected by when the local authority are involved with their family.
Please contact Jo for full details on how to apply, as well as the training we offer: