How do I request an advocate? An outline for England and the US

On this plate (5 sections)

People often ask how to get an advocate, and the honest answer is that it depends on where you live and on your circumstances. In some places the law entitles certain people to an advocate. In others, advocacy is offered by charities or by state agencies for people with disabilities. This plate is an outline, not a guide to your own case. It covers England, where independent mental health advocates, independent advocates under social care law and independent mental capacity advocates exist, and the United States, where state Protection and Advocacy systems operate. Eligibility varies, and a service's own staff, a local official body, or the contact routes named on the cited pages are the way to make an actual request.

England: independent mental health advocates (IMHAs)

Mind explains that IMHAs are specially trained advocates who can support certain people under the Mental Health Act. In England, the right applies to "qualifying patients", which Mind lists as people detained under the Act (with exceptions such as some emergency and holding powers), people liable to be detained, those on community treatment orders or under guardianship, conditionally discharged restricted patients, and informal patients being considered for certain treatments. The law is different in Wales.

The legal basis is section 130A of the Mental Health Act 1983, which says a local social services authority in England must make arrangements, as it considers reasonable, for advocates to be available to qualifying patients. The help should, so far as practicable, come from someone independent of anyone professionally concerned with the patient's treatment. The page shows the text current to 11 October 2026 and lists amendments from a 2025 Act not yet applied.

On how to ask, Mind says you can request an IMHA at any time after you become a qualifying patient. You can ask a member of ward staff, your responsible clinician or an approved mental health professional, look for posters on the ward about the advocacy provider, or ask friends and family to help you get support. Your nearest relative, an approved mental health professional or your responsible clinician can also ask an IMHA to visit you. Mind adds that you do not have to see an IMHA, and that if you are denied one despite qualifying, you should seek legal advice from a mental health or community care solicitor.

England: social care advocates and mental capacity advocates

Under the Care Act 2014, section 67 requires a local authority to arrange an independent advocate in some circumstances: where it must involve the person in functions such as needs assessments or care and support plans, and where it judges the person would have "substantial difficulty" taking part without help. The duty does not apply if a suitable person is available who is not paid or professionally engaged to provide their care and who has the person's consent or acts in the person's best interests. The page states it is current to 9 October 2026.

Mind's page on Independent Mental Capacity Advocates (IMCAs) says an IMCA can act for someone who lacks capacity to make certain decisions. The right applies, for example, to people aged 16 or over who lack capacity and have no close family member or carer to support them, in situations such as serious medical treatment decisions or plans for long-term accommodation in hospital or a care home. In England, local authorities appoint IMCAs.

Mind also notes that people who do not qualify for an IMHA can still get help from a community advocate or an NHS complaints advocate. The NHS page on mental health assessments (reviewed 4 August 2025) says you may be able to bring a friend or relative, and some people prefer an advocate who can represent their views; it says to check with your local council for advocacy services in your area. The plates on what advocacy is and advocating for your own care give context.

United States: Protection and Advocacy systems

The US has a different structure. SAMHSA's page on the Protection and Advocacy for Individuals with Mental Illness (PAIMI) program (last updated 11 April 2024) says the program is meant to protect and advocate for the rights of adults with serious mental illness and children with serious emotional disturbance, to provide legal-based advocacy services and to investigate abuse, neglect and rights violations. Its grantees are 57 state Protection and Advocacy (P&A) systems. Eligibility follows the definitions in the authorizing law.

The National Disability Rights Network overview says PAIMI was established in 1986, that these agencies are required to protect and advocate for the rights of people with mental illness and look into reports of abuse and neglect in facilities, and that later amendments allow them to serve people with mental illness who live in the community. Its page points to a "Find Your P&A" directory of member agencies, which is the route to a state's agency. Hospital patient advocate or ombudsman roles were not covered by the pages opened, so they are omitted.

Practical routes to ask

In England, the staff of the service you are using, such as ward staff or a care coordinator, can tell you who provides advocacy locally, and the local council can say what advocacy services exist and is the authority that must make arrangements for statutory advocacy. In the United States, the state P&A is the official body. A friend or family member can help you make the request or come with you. For records, see asking for your records, and for the history of why these roles exist, see the consumer/survivor movement.

The short version

Whether you can ask for an advocate, and which kind, depends on your country and circumstances. England has several statutory advocate roles, each with its own conditions, and the United States has state Protection and Advocacy systems for people with disabilities. This outline cannot say whether any one person qualifies, so use the official or service contacts for your own situation.