Andrew lives at home and has some care and support needs. During a recent visit, his Social Worker stated that Andrew appeared to experience difficulties relating to his ability to understand, retain and weigh complex information relating to his care.
As a result, the Social Worker needed to reassess Andrew’s care needs under the Care Act 2014. Considering Andrew’s difficulties with complex information, his social worker felt Andrew required an independent Care Act Advocate to support him through the process.
The advocate’s role was to understand and support Andrew to ensure his views, wishes and preferences were heard and noted throughout the assessment.
The advocate visited Andrew at home and together they agreed to write an advocacy plan which was easily accessible to everyone involved in his care. The plan focussed on the things which mattered most to Andrew and what he considered important for his overall wellbeing and quality of life.
During this process, it became clear that Andrew felt he did not go out very often and as a result, Andrew said he sometimes felt quite lonely. Not having the opportunity to venture out was significantly impacting Andrew’s mood and overall quality of life. Due to Andrew’s disability, he was unable to go out independently and would need support from carers when out in the community.
The social worker was able to evidence this information in their care needs assessment which resulted in additional care visits being commissioned. This has been an empowering experience for Andrew who is now able to access his community in a way which is meaningful to him. His advocate was also able to signpost Andrew to Age UK who have a befriending service supporting people facing isolation and experiencing loneliness.
Andrew said that he felt able to trust his advocate, they listened to him and encouraged him to question things throughout the whole process, Andrew says he is now much happier and is very busy.
