Welcome to Advocacy

Objectives To define advocacy To identify situations in which budget advisors need advocacy skills To recognise and understand advocacy skills To practise advocacy skills

Definitions Advocacy, Advocate (n) and Advocate (v) Advocacy - ‘speaking out on issues of concern’ Advocate (n) - ‘Someone who takes action to help someone else’ Advocate (v) - ‘Taking action to help someone else’

Stan and Steve Stan is 24 and lives with his flatmate Steve in a supported living set up. They both have intellectual disabilities and receive in home support for three hours each day. Stan cannot read and understands only very basic concepts of money. He knows which colour of note works in his routine situations i.e. brown to go swimming, green for groceries and blue for the pub.

Stan and Steve A door to door sales person arrived at the house one evening selling medical text books. Stan welcomed the chance to buy one and paid $80 in cash for the first one. He then signed a contract agreeing to pay $80 per week for the next 12 weeks to receive the full set. He signed a direct debit form and handed over his bank details to approve the deal right away.

Stan and Steve This was two nights ago. He has since shown the contract to his support worker and announced that he doesn’t want the book anymore. Stan cannot write and doesn’t fully understand the deal that he has agreed to. When it is explained to him that the money will come out of his bank account every week for 12 weeks his is upset and doesn’t want it to happen.

Stan and Steve What will you do to support Stan? What are his rights? What acts protect him as a consumer? Where will you go to find this information?

Stan and Steve - Answer Stan is protected by the door to door sales act. As he has paid over $20 for a book he has the right to cancel the agreement within seven days of the day after the agreement was signed. The cancellation must be in writing and does not have to state why he wants to cancel.

Stan and Steve - Answer A letter needs to be sent to the company confirming the cancellation ASAP so that Stan isn’t eligible for anymore payments and can be refunded for the first book. The trader must then refund all of the money and collect the goods. This information is in the ‘Clients Rights Handbook’. All services have one.

Stan and Steve - Answer You will need to advocate here as Stan cannot write and doesn’t fully understand the deal. It might then pay to inform his support worker of the process so that he can work to support Stan on any future issues. You might want to suggest future proofing his direct debit procedure so that two signatures are required before being accepted by the bank.

Stan and Steve - Answer Can you stop the direct debit? Depends on your relationship with the bank. Some banks will and some won’t. What sort of contact will you make with each person/agency? DON’T start giving Stan information until you know what to tell him

Effective Listening Stop talking. You cannot listen and talk at the same time. Put the talker at ease. Help the person feel able to talk freely. Show the talker that you want to listen. Act and look interested. Remove distractions. Don’t shuffle, doodle, click your pen etc. Empathise with the talkers. Try and see their point of view.

Effective Listening Be patient. Don’t interrupt. Hold your temper. Emotion inhibits understanding. Don’t argue or criticise. This causes people to shut down. Ask open ended questions. Encourages the talker to elaborate. Stop talking. First and last – the most important.

Letter writing Advantages Less confrontational. Time to respond and digest the information. Time to draft and redraft and hone your arguments. Provides a written record Can be sent registered post so you know it was received.

Letter writing Disadvantages Time! Stuck in someone’s in-tray. Ignored or lost in the system. It can take a long time to get a response this way. Not advisable for urgent matters unless it has taken a formal turn and threats of action are imminent. No response

Letter writing Federation Stationery is provided to make contacting creditors easier. These forms are commonly used by advisers and are in standard format: 104A – 1st letter, 104T – 2nd letter 105T – final letter

Phone Calls Be prepared! Know what you’re asking for Who you’re asking (not always possible in large organisations) and how to do it.

Phone Calls Advantages You can (sometimes) get straight to where you need to be and talk to who you need to. Quicker to gauge a response; possible to get a quick response this way.

Phone Calls Disadvantages Costly Time lags Sometimes only a message service available You aren’t able to read the persons body language. Phone based negotiation which can be difficult.

Phone Calls Disadvantages Phone based negotiation which can be difficult. You need to practice good communication to get your points across and open up the discussion to listening. You may still get stuck in the system and can be fobbed off. Language problems, call centre staff with no authority to deal with issues.

Phone Calls You need to record all phone discussions in writing on your clients file and or follow up with a creditor in writing.

Meetings Advantages You can take documentation and show evidence. Harder for people to dismiss you outright when you are there with them. It’s easier to read a situation when you can see it. You may get a quicker response. Your problem has a face.

Meetings Disadvantages Time consuming, difficult to get It’s all visible so you need to be prepared and practiced. People can step out at the last minute and leave you to talk to their representatives. Creditors are often not in the same town as you and this can involve inconvenient travel.

Key Questions What appear to be the problems? How might they be solved? What information are you short of? How might that be obtained? What type and level of advocacy/negotiation seems appropriate? What outcomes are you looking for? Is there a bottom line? (If so, what is it?)

Self empowerment If they can do it themselves, why would I do it for them?