Advocacy
Advocacy is the process of promoting, supporting and representing the rights and interests of people with a disability. It also involves the protection of an individual's rights and interests to obtain justice. Advocacy can involve acting, speaking or responding on behalf of the person with a disability to ensure they have access to and receive services that meet their individual needs and respect their right to choose.
An Advocate is a person independent of the service provider who promotes, supports and represents the rights and interests of a consumer with a disability.
Rocky Bay respects the right of each person with a disability to access an advocate and/or advocacy service that protects their interests and rights and assists them to achieve personal goals and aspirations and will, where necessary and appropriate, encourage and assist each person to do so.
Rocky Bay aims to ensure that all services acknowledge advocacy programs and individual advocates and the actions undertaken by them, when representing the interests of a person with a disability.
Services are designed and administered so as to ensure that people with disabilities have access to advocacy support where necessary to ensure adequate participation in decision making about the services they receive.
A number of advocacy agencies have been established in Western Australia to advocate on behalf of people who have a disability. Rocky Bay encourages clients to seek support from various agencies including :
People with Disabilities (WA) Inc
Provides advocacy, information, lobbying and referrals for all people with a physical, intellectual, psychiatric or sensory disability.
Disability Discrimination Unit - Sussex Street Community Law Service
Legal advice and advocacy on social welfare problems. Specialist advocacy and advice for people with disabilities.
Community Legal and Advocacy Centre
Advice and advocacy on legal, Centrelink and consumer issues, financial counselling and welfare rights service.
Welfare Rights and Advocacy Service
Advice and advocacy on Centrelink, Homeswest and consumer and legal rights, financial counselling service.
Citizens Advice Bureau of WA
Advice, information and counselling on any subject. Will drafting, after hours legal advice, tax help (volunteer).
Equal Opportunity Commission (WA)
Promotes the concept of equal opportunity in the community through public presentations and seminars, training workshops and publication. Investigates and attempts to resolve by conciliation, complaints of alleged discrimination and harassment.
Ethnic Disability Advocacy Centre (EDAC)
Providing advocacy and information to ensure that ethnic people with disabilities gain equitable access to a range of services provided by government and non-government agencies. Advocating with and on behalf of individuals and/or their carers in ensuring that services are responsive to their cultural and linguistic needs.
Health Consumers’ Council WA (Inc.)
An independent body representing consumers on health care issues. The council’s mission is to provide a ‘voice’ and a recognised presence for health consumers.
Office of the Employment Advocate
Office of Health Review
Provide a means of having complaints about the provision of health services reviewed and to identify the cause and ways to remove or minimise them.
Office of the Public Advocate
The Office of the Public Advocate’s mission is to promote and protect the rights, dignity and autonomy of people who are unable to make reasoned decisions which are in their own best interests and to reduce the risk of neglect, abuse or exploitation.
State Ombudsman
The Ombudsman is an independent and impartial person who investigates complaints about government bodies and reports directly to the Parliament of WA – not to the government of the day.
