On 13 October 2026, the Department for Education published updated National Standards for the Provision of Children’s and Young People’s Advocacy Services in England. The publication provides an important opportunity for organisations and professionals working with children and young people to reflect on how effectively they promote children’s rights, support participation and facilitate access to independent advocacy. Independent advocacy is an essential safeguard, particularly when children and young people are involved in decisions that significantly affect their lives.
Why independent advocacy matters
Children and young people may face situations in which their wishes, feelings and preferences differ from the decisions made by professionals or organisations responsible for their care and support. These situations may involve living arrangements, education, family relationships, safeguarding, care planning, access to services or complaints. Although professionals have responsibilities to listen to children and take their views seriously, children and young people may not always feel confident expressing disagreement or challenging decisions.
Independent advocacy helps address this imbalance by supporting children and young people to understand their rights, communicate their wishes and feelings, and ensure their views are represented. Importantly, an independent advocate is not simply another professional providing advice or support. Their role is to help ensure that the child’s own voice is heard, including when their views differ from those of the adults involved.
Understanding the updated national standards
The updated national standards follow a review of the previous framework for children’s and young people’s advocacy services.They provide expectations for the provision of independent advocacy, with an emphasis on ensuring that children and young people can access appropriate, effective and independent support.
While the standards primarily concern advocacy provision and relevant commissioning responsibilities, the principles underpinning them are important across children’s social care and related services. Organisations should consider how their own arrangements enable children and young people to understand and exercise their rights.
Five areas for reflection and improvement
1. Awareness and understanding of advocacy
Children and young people cannot meaningfully exercise rights they do not understand.
Providing written information or contact details is important, but this alone may not ensure that a child understands what independent advocacy is or when it might be useful. Professionals should be able to explain the role of an independent advocate in language that is accessible and appropriate to the child’s age, understanding and communication needs. Conversations about advocacy should not be limited to initial introductions or the distribution of information. Children and young people may need independent support at different stages of their involvement with services, particularly when circumstances change or difficult decisions arise.
2. Making advocacy genuinely accessible
Access to advocacy must be meaningful rather than simply theoretical.
Some children and young people may experience additional barriers because of communication needs, disability, language, previous experiences or difficulties trusting professionals. Organisations should consider whether information is available in appropriate formats and whether children and young people receive the practical assistance necessary to access independent support. This may include communication aids, adapted materials, interpretation or support to make initial contact with an advocacy service. Accessibility also involves creating an environment in which children and young people feel comfortable requesting advocacy without fear of negative consequences.
3. Supporting children and young people when they disagree
Disagreement is not necessarily evidence of poor relationships or ineffective practice.
Children and young people may reasonably question decisions, challenge restrictions, raise concerns or express dissatisfaction with services. Professionals should respond constructively and help children understand the options available to them. Independent advocacy can be particularly important when a child feels unable to express their views directly, believes they have not been listened to or wishes to challenge a decision. Supporting access to advocacy should be understood as a positive aspect of rights-based practice, rather than as a challenge to professional authority.
4. Moving from listening to meaningful participation
There is an important difference between asking children and young people for their views and demonstrating that those views have influenced decisions.
Meaningful participation requires professionals and organisations to consider children’s wishes and feelings, explain how decisions have been reached and provide opportunities for further discussion. Where a decision cannot reflect a child’s preferred outcome, the reasons should be explained clearly and respectfully. Organisations should reflect on whether children and young people can identify examples of their feedback leading to changes. Participation should be evident in everyday interactions, individual planning, organisational consultation and service improvement.
5. Leadership, oversight and quality assurance
Promoting children’s rights and access to advocacy requires more than written policies.
Leaders and managers should consider whether arrangements are understood, implemented and reviewed. Useful questions include:
- Do children and young people understand their rights and the purpose of independent advocacy?
- Are professionals confident in explaining how advocacy can be accessed?
- Can children and young people request independent support without unnecessary barriers?
- Are concerns and requests for advocacy responded to appropriately?
- Are children and young people supported to express disagreement and challenge decisions?
- Is feedback used to inform improvements in practice?
- Can the organisation demonstrate that its arrangements are effective?
These questions can inform supervision, staff development, internal audits and wider quality assurance activities.
From policy to practice: a practical review
The publication provides an opportunity for organisations to review how children’s rights and access to advocacy are promoted in practice.
A proportionate review could include five steps.
Step 1 — Review information and guidance
Check whether policies, information materials and relevant procedures explain independent advocacy clearly and accurately.
Step 2 — Seek children’s and young people’s views
Explore whether children and young people understand advocacy, know how to access it and feel confident requesting independent support.
Step 3 — Test professional knowledge
Consider how staff would respond if a child requested an advocate, wished to raise a complaint or disagreed with an important decision.
Step 4 — Examine practice and outcomes
Review whether requests for advocacy are facilitated appropriately and whether children’s views are considered and reflected in decision-making.
Step 5 — Agree and monitor improvements
Identify areas for development, establish actions, allocate responsibilities and review whether changes have improved children’s experiences.
The purpose should not be to generate additional paperwork, but to understand whether existing arrangements work effectively for the children and young people they are intended to support.
Creating a culture in which children’s voices matter
Independent advocacy is one element of a wider culture that values children’s rights, participation and meaningful involvement.
An organisation may have appropriate policies, accessible information and established procedures, but these arrangements will have limited impact if children and young people do not feel listened to or supported. A rights-based culture is demonstrated through everyday interactions, respectful communication, openness to challenge and a willingness to learn from children’s experiences. It also requires professionals to recognise that supporting children to challenge decisions is not inconsistent with their responsibilities. Rather, it contributes to transparency, accountability and better-informed decision-making.
Final reflection
The updated national standards provide an opportunity to strengthen awareness of independent advocacy and reflect on the importance of children’s voices across services working with children and young people. The central question is not simply whether advocacy arrangements exist, but whether children and young people can understand, access and benefit from them when they need support.
If a child or young person disagreed with an important decision tomorrow, would they know how to access independent advocacy, and would the professionals around them actively support them to do so?
The answer should be evident in everyday practice, not simply in organisational documentation.
Further reading
Department for Education (13 October 2026). National standards for the provision of children’s and young people’s advocacy services.
