1. Presentation to Local Safeguarding Board · June 2015
Time to advocate?
Assessing the impact of the South East Wales Safeguarding Older People Independent Advocacy Project
Presentation to Local Safeguarding Board · June 2015

2. Context

3. Code of Practice on Advocacy
Part 10 (Complaints, Representations and Advocacy)
To ensure that access to advocacy services and support is available to enable individuals to engage and participate when local authorities are exercising statutory duties in relation to them; and
To arrange an independent advocate to facilitate the involvement of individuals in certain circumstances
 Lists functions where local authorities must consider individuals’ needs for advocacy support

4. Code of Practice on Advocacy
The codes of practice covers:
a clear recognition of the benefits of advocacy
the range of advocacy available to people
the key points when people’s need for advocacy must be assessed
the circumstances / environment that impact on people’s need for advocacy
when independent advocacy must be provided
the circumstances when it is inappropriate for certain people to advocate
the arrangements for publicising advocacy services
charging

5. Research findings
There are three key questions that the researchers asked – more detail on these can be found in Chapter 1 of the report:
How much did we do?
How well did we do it?
Is anyone better off?

6. How much did we do?
1,516 beneficiaries in research study (of c.2,500 in the service)
Cardiff and Vale (737)
Gwent (337)
Morgannwg (331)
Torfaen (111)
Three-fifths female, 39% > 80 years of age, 42% living alone
Key referring issues
Financial, residential care, access to services, PoVA and PoA
Case length = 8.4 hours
Two-thirds split direct to indirect time
3.6 visits per case
This slide describes the number of people in the evaluation study, from which project they came, the demographic characteristics of the respondents, why typically they came to the project, and for how long they were supported.
The overall message here is that people who came into the project often were very vulnerable (in terms of age and isolation) and many had complex issues that needed to be resolved.

7. Conclusions “Older people will... Achievement of outcome
...be supported to live independently, they will have developed the confidence, self determination and emotional strength to cope with the challenges they face in their lives”
OUTCOME ACHIEVED
...have choice and control over their own lives through the use of information and access to support that will allow them to exercise their rights”
The project set out to achieve these two objectives, and in the view of the researchers, did this through their work.

8. Conclusions Policy implications
National Outcomes Framework and Well-being Statement:
Well-being
e.g. I get the help I need, when I need it in the way I want it 
Physical and mental health and emotional well-being
I am healthy
I am happy
Securing rights and entitlements
e.g. I have voice and control; I can speak for myself or have someone to do it for me
Social and economic well-being
e.g. I have a social life and can be with the people I choose
Protection from abuse and neglect
I am safe and protected from abuse and neglect
Suitability of living accommodation
I have suitable living accommodation that meets my needs
It is important to note that the project has taken place during a period of significant change in social care policy. The Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act has made providing independent advocacy a legal duty. The project has been instrumental in working alongside policymakers and others in order to ensure that the evidence of the study has impacted on the way the Codes of Practice have been developed.
As part of the Act, the National Outcomes Framework has been developed, and the table above provides evidence that the project has been delivering the kinds of outcomes that the Framework requires.

9. Conclusions
Overall, the Safeguarding Older People Project has delivered a professional and effective service over the last three years. Its values of being person-centred, empathetic and enabling have ensured that it has become a very well-respected and independent champion for the rights of older people across South East Wales.
To draw this all together, the statement above provides the conclusion to the report from the perspective of the researchers. It summarises all that has gone before in the presentation, and draws the key findings together.

10. This diagram draws together the themes that emerged from interviews with beneficiaries, the advocates and stakeholders (who were largely a groups of social workers that the researchers spoke to). These are reported in Chapters 3, 4 and 5 of the report.
The diagrammatic representation provides a useful summary of how the issues and benefits identified by the different constituencies overlay. It is instructive that the issue at the heart of the diagram which has therefore come a number of different perspectives is that the projects like this “ensure that the most vulnerable are supported”, a role that will need to continue. Many of the issues represented here are self-explanatory, but some definitions are provided for some of the less obvious:
‘Clarify roles and remit’ = the need to ensure that social workers and advocates are clear about where their responsibilities begin and end
‘Additional capacity’ = stakeholders were appreciative of the fact that advocates operated in a way that they used to in the field supporting people
‘We are not just a tick box’ = this referenced the fact that the service always dealt with the whole person, and placed this at the forefront of their work

11. So what?

12. A proposal...
Would LA’s be interested in setting up a working group/process to:
review all the evidence from us and others;
explore the issues;
make recommendations about the priorities that arise for the Code; and
Identify how these might be addressed through co- production?

13. The Golden Thread Advocacy Programme
The outcome…….
The Golden Thread Advocacy Programme
Jeff Hawkins · Chair, Age Connects Wales
Dr Mark Llewellyn · Deputy Director, Welsh Institute for Health and Social Care (WIHSC), University of South Wales
©University of Glamorgan

14. Thank you for listening
Jeff Hawkins · Chair, Age Connects Wales
Dr Mark Llewellyn · Deputy Director, Welsh Institute for Health and Social Care (WIHSC), University of South Wales
©University of Glamorgan