Peer Advocacy & Participation Service

At the heart of this service model is the belief that this service should be as independent and impartial as possible of the drug and alcohol treatment provider(s), health and/or social care system. An element of the service will be advocacy and ‘Independent advocacy’ cannot, therefore, be delivered by member of staff employed by the service/Supplier themselves. By providing independent advocacy this enables the person to question or challenge the professionals’ views, while retaining confidentiality if they need to. There is a wealth of experience and expertise in the community which should be promoted and built upon and not be duplicated. This Peer Advocacy and Participation service shall be the main service for people who use(d) drugs and alcohol, is not intended to duplicate any existing delivery i.e. treatment services. Therefore, the Supplier may be required to facilitate and support onward referral and / or work in partnership with other voluntary, statutory sector and independent organisations e.g., Citizens Advice Liverpool or service providers of Carers advocacy to ensure that people have access to a range of information and advice that promote their independence, health and well-being.