Self advocacy or speaking up for yourself is often not easy. There are places where you can get support to speak up or join others who also want to speak up and have their say.
Here are some of the organisations that may be able to offer you support to speak up:
Speaking Up For Advocacy (SUFA) used to be two organisations - Speaking Up For Action and Sheffield Citizen Advocacy. It’s now one organisation providing lots of different sorts of advocacy services for people with learning disabilities in Sheffield. People with learning disabilities play a big part in running the organisation.
We offer self-advocacy, citizen or one-to-one advocacy, crisis advocacy which is support for people around issues and peer advocacy (people with a learning disability supporting other people with a learning disability).
Speaking Up For Advocacy has moved to a new building. They are now based at:
Units GF 1 & 2
Sorby House
42 Spital Hill
Burngreave
Sheffield
S4 7LG
To find out more, ring SUFA on 0114 213 2520
If you can't get through on this number, ring 0114 272 7723 or 0114 276 3110
The Burton Street Foundation offers advocacy support groups and also individual advocacy support to people with profound and complex needs.
To find out more, ring 0114 233 2980 (Extension 240)
Sheffield Mencap support an advocacy group called ‘Voices and Choices’. Voices and Choices has linked up with Speaking Up For Advocacy (SUFA) and other advocacy groups across Sheffield to deal with citizenship issues for people with learning disabilities. The group also attend the monthly People's Parliament at the Town Hall.
To find out more, ring Sheffield Mencap on 0114 276 7757
Sheffield People’s Parliament for people with a learning disability meets once a month at the Town Hall and is an opportunity for people with learning disabilities to come together and talk about things that are important to them. Some members of the People's Parliament are part of the Learning Disabilities Partnership Board, so that they can tell the Partnership Board what the People's Parliament thinks.
Sheffield Centre for Independent Living (SCIL) is a user led organisation that works with people with disabilities to support them with access to health and social care.
SCIL offers
- information and advice to find the support you need to arrange and manage your own self directed support package or Direct Payment.
- free, confidential information and advice on any disability issue to disabled people living in Sheffield.
- a confidential health advocacy service for disabled people who are having problems getting an NHS funded health service which they feel meets their individual needs.
Sheffield Centre for Independent Living are based at:
The Circle
33 Rockingham Lane
33 Rockingham Lane
Sheffield
S1 4FW
To find out more, ring SCIL on 0114 253 6750
Or visit their website www.sheffieldcil.org.uk
