Advocacy is a means of supporting and helping people to speak up or act for themselves

Advocates do not decide what is "right" for a person, but will help people make their own informed decisions

• Balance Whanganui empowers people by helping them understand their rights

• Advocacy is integrated into our peer support services
• We assist people to take a stand through principled negotiation, but do not avoid challenging the mental health system directly if required
• At a person's request we can attend interviews and appointments to speak on their behalf or to simply offer our presence as support

Systemic Advocacy

Balance Whanganui also represents a mental health service user viewpoint at local, regional and national forums.