Standing Up, Speaking Out. How Advocacy Transformed Lives in Neath Port Talbot

This blog reflects the delivery and impact of the Independent Professional Advocacy (IPA) within the Neath Port Talbot region during the financial year from April 2024 to 31st March 2025.

What is Independent Professional Advocacy (IPA)?

Independent Professional Advocacy (IPA) is about ensuring that people have a voice when it matters most. It means having someone by your side to support you in understanding information, exploring your options, and making decisions about your care and support. Advocates are independent, which means they work only for you—not for the local authority, not for health services, and not for any other professional body.

Advocacy is especially important when someone is feeling unheard, overwhelmed, or left out of key conversations about their life. This could be due to a mental health challenge, a disability, a safeguarding situation, or simply the complexity of navigating social services. In Wales, the right to advocacy is legally protected under the Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act 2014.

Why Does the Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act Matter?

The Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act 2014 is a groundbreaking piece of legislation. It places a clear duty on local authorities to support people to have a voice in decisions affecting them. The Act emphasises the importance of well-being, person-centred planning, and early intervention—and recognises that advocacy is often key to achieving those aims.

Under Part 10 of the Act, people are entitled to access independent advocacy if they have difficulty in engaging with care and support processes and have no appropriate individual to assist them. This ensures that people aren’t left behind simply because they don’t have someone to help explain things or stand up for their rights.

Advocacy in Action – Our Work in Neath Port Talbot

In 2024–2025, Mental Health Matters Wales delivered the IPA service for Neath Port Talbot Council, making a significant and lasting impact on the lives of local residents.

Our team supported 236 individuals, each with their own personal challenges and journeys. We received 51 new referrals, explored and supported 432 separate advocacy issues, and successfully resolved 169 of them. These issues included everything from safeguarding concerns and mental health needs to housing challenges, care planning, and accessing information.

When people felt confused, unheard, or alone—our advocates were there. Whether someone was facing a child protection case, struggling with a mental health diagnosis, or unsure about how to engage with social services, we helped make their voice central to every decision. Our advocates ensured that people understood their rights, made informed choices, and didn’t have to navigate complex systems without support.

Advocacy Isn’t Just in the Office—It’s in the Community

We didn’t just wait for people to come to us. Our team was out in the community, raising awareness of the service and making advocacy more visible, familiar, and accessible. We visited libraries, civic centres, job centres, healthcare hubs, and more talking to people, sharing information, and building strong referral pathways.

These efforts meant that more people knew about their right to advocacy before reaching crisis point—and could access help earlier. This proactive approach is one of the reasons why IPA continues to be a vital part of the well-being landscape in Neath Port Talbot.

Real Voices: The Power of Advocacy

One client told us:

“I was overwhelmed and didn’t understand what social services were asking of me. My advocate helped me break everything down and made sure I had a voice in meetings. Without that support, I wouldn’t have had the confidence to speak up for what I needed.”(R, aged 43 – Neath Port Talbot)

This quote reminds us that behind every referral, every statistic, and every case file is a person—someone who just needed someone in their corner.

Looking Ahead

Thanks to funding and support from Neath Port Talbot Council, the IPA service has become a trusted, compassionate presence in the borough. And as we move into the next year, we remain committed to empowering more people, building stronger partnerships, and ensuring that advocacy remains at the heart of social care.