OPAAL is a charity funded to promote and develop resources to help older people speak up for themselves and those that care  for them to support them in the way that is most authentic and meaningful for them. We also promote and champion the efforts of all those engaged independent advocacy services, both for new and existing advocacy service providers.

What is advocacy?

Advocacy supports and enables people who have difficulty representing their interests, to exercise their rights, express their views, explore and make informed choices. In short, advocates help others speak up about what is right for them.

With this in mind, OPAAL’s aims are:

• To provide the strategic lead on advocacy with older people

• To ensure that older people have access to advocacy

• To support the development of new national advocacy projects to meet the needs of older people

• To improve standards of advocacy practice to older people

What OPAAL wants to achieve – our statement of intent

We believe that there are specific circumstances where all individuals must have a right to the support of an independent advocate to ensure that their own interests and preferences are acknowledged and addressed.

Such advocacy services must be defined in terms of their scope and purpose and be based upon appropriately trained and supported personnel, whether voluntary or paid.

As an essential first step, these advocacy services must be available to all older people who are:

• At the point of discharge from hospital.

• Directly affected by a change in the management or running of their care service.

• At the point of accessing continuing care and community care services.

• At the point of being assessed for continuing care and community care services.

• At all reviews affecting care services in hospital and the community.

• When something needs to change in their home or where they live.

• When facing issues in the workplace, with more and more individuals are ageing without adult children to support them, combined with a dramatic reduction in the funding for general advocacy, greater numbers of older people than ever before are facing a future where they struggle to speak up about their needs and wants. We call upon Government to set out a clearer entitlement to advocacy and provide the appropriate resources to ensure that these services are made available and they are free of charge to the individuals.