The facilitator may appoint an advocate for a child or young person for whom a family group conference is being held. An advocate is usually selected from the child’s immediate circle of support and is someone that the child feels comfortable with. The advocate may be a school social worker, teacher, youth worker or relative for example.
The role of the child’s advocate is more formal than that of the support person who does not speak on behalf of the child. It is the job of the child’s advocate to make sure that the rights of the child or young person are respected and that their views are heard at the conference. Only the child for whom the conference is being called is entitled to have advocate accompany them.
The child’s advocate undertakes the following activities:
- the advocate meets with the child or young person before the conference to assist them to identify their ideas, views and wishes;
- the advocate discusses the conference with the child and identifies any concerns that they may have, asks the child whether they would like to attend the conference and how they would like their views presented;
- the advocate attends the conference and speaks on behalf of the child to ensure that the child’s views are considered in any decisions that are made. The advocate may stay during ‘private family time’ if this is what the child and their family want;
- the advocate records decisions and any timeframes agreed upon by participants at the conference. This information is provided to the child and other significant people involved with their care, including the child protection workers attending the conference; and
- the advocate will have at least one follow up session with the child to ensure that the decisions made at the conference are being implemented.