Hear Me children's rights and advocacy service

Do you work for or with my social worker?

No. We work for you. We are completely independent from any other adults that work with you, including your social worker, teachers, staff at your placement, foster parents or family members.

We will not share any information you give us with anyone else unless you want us to or we are worried you or someone else is at risk of harm. Social services cannot see our notes and we cannot see theirs. If a social worker or teacher or anyone else shares something with us about you, we need to tell you about it as soon as possible.

Can I ask for a new advocate if things are not working out with the one you gave me?

Yes. We are a child-led service. If you want a new advocate we can sort that out. We may ask you why you want a new advocate, however, you don't have to provide an answer.

How long will you work with me for?

Unless your situation changes and you no longer meet the criteria for our service (for example because your care order is discharged or because you are over 25), we will work with you for as long as you want us to, providing there is an issue we can help with.

How often will we see each other?

It is up to you. We will do our best to see you as often or as little as you want. We will not see you if you don't want us to.

Can I choose which advocate supports me?

You can always choose the gender of your advocate (if they are male or female). If there is a specific advocate you want, then we will do our best to match you with them.

I don't speak English, can you still help me?

Yes we can. With a little help from a translator we can support all young people that meet our service criteria. If you need a leaflet about our service in your own language then please let us know. If we don't have leaflets in your language, we will create them.

I am visually impaired or blind can you still help me?

Yes we can. We can provide information for you in braille or large text. We will do all we can to meet any request you have that will help us communicate with each other.

I have difficulties hearing or I am deaf, can you still help me?

Yes we can. We can employ a professional who knows sign language to help us communicate with each other. We will do all we can to meet any request you have that will help us communicate with each other.

I have dyslexia, what can you do to make sure I can understand the information you or other professionals send me?

We can do whatever you need to make sure you understand any paperwork we or others send to you. This could include sending you information on coloured paper or reading out information to you.

Where will we meet?

As far as we are able to, we will meet you wherever you want us to. With younger children we will almost always need to see you at school or somewhere else neutral. With older children, however, we can meet you in a public place (like a café or McDonalds) if you prefer. If you don't want to see your advocate in person, we can arrange telephone and online appointments or even just talk over What's App, email or text message. The choice is yours. We will never refuse to see a young person face-to-face because they live far away from our offices. Unfortunately we cannot meet our young people at the home of a biological family member.

Can I have a trusted adult with me when we meet?

Yes. While advocacy usually works best if we meet with our young people alone, we will always do our best to agree to any request for specific adults to be present when we meet up.

I don't like going to my child in care reviews or child protection conferences. Can you go for me?

Yes. We can meet with you beforehand to get a list of things you want us to tell people and things you want us to find out. We can attend your meetings for you and then tell you what was discussed afterwards. We cannot, however, attend any meeting you are not invited to.

I have a request about how we work together which is not covered above, what shall I do?

Just let us know. We do all we can to work for you in a way that you are comfortable with.

What can I do if my question is not covered above or I don't understand the answers given on this page?

Please contact us using the details below and a member of the team will be happy to help.

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