Commentary on Sections Independent advocacy support Section 68 – Safeguarding enquiries and reviews
405.Section 68 places a duty on local authorities to arrange an independent advocate to be available to represent and support an adult who is the subject of an adult safeguarding enquiry or a safeguarding adults review where appropriate, if that local authority considers that the adult would experience substantial difficulty in understanding the processes or information relevant to those processes or communicating their views, wishes, or feelings. The duty does not apply if the local authority is satisfied there is an appropriate person to represent the adult, who is not engaged as that adult’s professional or paid care and by who the adult consents to being so represented, or where the adult lacks capacity to consent, the local authority is satisfied that it would be in the adult’s best interests to be represented by that person.
406.The purpose of this section is to ensure that individuals who are the subject of a local authority’s safeguarding enquiry or a Safeguarding Adults Review will, where appropriate, have an independent advocate made available to represent and support them so as to enable them to participate meaningfully in those processes.