Advocacy Referral & Information Form
PLEASE READ THIS
CAREFULLY BEFORE REFERRING A
PERSON
Below is an advocacy
referral form for Disability
Advocacy NSW. This form is
designed to be used by
organisations and service
providers wishing to refer a
person with a disability to
the service. Individuals
with a disability and carers
can still seek the
assistance of an advocate by
contacting us directly. The
aim of this referral system
is to ensure that we assist
clients with the most urgent
needs first.
After a referral is
received we will prioritise
the matter based on the
severity of the issue, the
severity of the person’s
disability, and the person’s
access to other supports and
will contact the client and
the referrer giving an
indication of how long it
will be before advocacy can
begin. Average waiting time
is approximately 2-4 weeks.
It will help us a great
deal if you can complete the
attached referral form and
add any additional
information that will help
us to quickly understand the
issues involved. If you have
any questions feel free to
contact our advocates 1300
365 085 or try our web site
www.da.org.au .
Who is the Advocacy
Service for?
For people
with any type of disability
or mental illness.
Areas Covered:
Hunter,
New England and Mid North
Coast regions of NSW
Australia.
INDIVIDUAL ADVOCACY
- Directly advocating
on behalf of a person or
providing information and
advice so that a person can
advocate for themselves (see
examples next page).
- Linking a person
with other relevant services
(eg helping a person get
help from a solicitor,
financial counsellor, tenant
advocate, court support
worker).
- Supporting an
individual to take formal
action on matters related to
disability discrimination or
making a complaint against a
service provider.
THINGS AN ADVOCATE CANNOT
DO
- Provide casework
services (e.g. finding
accommodation, applying for
services, managing services,
etc).
- Provide advocacy
services when a government
disability caseworker can
provide advocacy support and
they do not have a conflict
of interest (e.g. help a
person with a disability
with a pension problem if
the disability caseworker
works for the state
government).
- Provide advocacy
for a person when a more
appropriate service is
available (e.g. debt matters
where a financial counsellor
is available, representation
at a tenancy tribunal when a
tenants advocacy service is
available, provide court
support when a suitable
court support program is
available).
- Provide advocacy
for a person who wishes to
take out an apprehended
personal violence order
against a neighbour or
workmate if appropriate
mediation has not been
attempted to resolve the
dispute.
General examples of how a
Disability Advocate can
assist people with a
disability:
- Accommodation
(Housing) e.g. assist client
with tenancy issues,
negotiate for more
appropriate accommodation
for young people in nursing
homes.
- Access (Physical
access) -- e.g. assist a
client to seek improved
access to a building, on
behalf of clients work with
local council to improve
physical access to existing
facilities.
- Children (custody
and child protection
matters) -- e.g. support
parents with an intellectual
disability in care
proceedings.
- Compensation &
Insurance (accidents and
injury) e.g. independently
assist client to claim
insurance from an accident
or deal with compensation
payout.
- Consumers &
Contracts (consumer
protection) e.g. assist a
client unfairly treated in
product purchase.
- Decision making
e.g. support a client at a
guardianship tribunal
hearing, help client to
consider and understand all
options in a major decision.
- Disputes e.g.
assist a client to
participate and understand a
dispute mediation procedure.
- Discrimination e.g.
assist a client to take a
disability discrimination
complaint to Australian
Human Rights Commission or
NSW Anti Discrimination
Board).
- Education e.g.
assist a client who may have
been excluded from a
training course, assist a
carer to negotiate with a
school about improving the
support for a child with a
disability.
- Employment e.g.
assist a client in dispute
with work place.
- Equipment e.g.
assist client who has been
unfairly treated by
equipment supply service.
- Finances (debt,
credit, pensions, benefits,
superannuation) -- e.g.
assist a client to challenge
a pension debt.
- Health (health
consumer rights) e.g. assist
client to question a medical
decision or raise a
complaint about treatment
for a mental illness
- Offences &
infringements (crime, sexual
and drug offences, traffic
offences) e.g. assist a
client to deal with a charge
of parking infringement or
assault.
- Relationships
(marriage, divorce, de facto
relationships, parenting,
adoption, domestic violence)
e.g. assist a client to
participate in family court
mediation.
- Services
(Disability) (specialist
disability service
providers) -- e.g. assist a
client to raise a complaint
with a day program, or
assist a client to access
Home Care services.
- Transport e.g.
assist a client unable to
get access to disabled
taxis.
- Wills & estates
e.g. assist a carer to get
advice and support to
provide for client in the
future or assist client to
challenge a will.
TO CHECK IF YOUR REFERRAL
MEETS OUR REFERRAL CRITERIA
Phone1300 365 085 to
discuss before completing
this form.
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