Life and Times of POhWER, a brief history

POhWER is registered charity, launched in Hertfordshire in 1996.

We have a unique Board of Trustees who are passionate about advocacy. The majority of Trustees have personal experience of using advocacy services.

POhWER recognises the inequalities that exist in society and we work to promote respect and dignity for all by enabling and supporting those who face discrimination and prejudice or feel dis-empowered to access to services and systems and to get their voice heard.

Our commitment to enabling individuals to speak up for their rights is primarily delivered through one-to-one advocacy services.

POhWER’s services are available to individuals who want the support of an advocate to empower them to speak up for their rights, access information or say what they want about the services they receive or need. This includes health, housing, care, community and legal services.
Since 1996 POhWER has grown to become Hertfordshire’s primary advocacy resource and has provided a wide range of free, confidential and independent advocacy services across nine Primary Care Trust areas in the county.

POhWER was one of the original pilot providers of the Independent Complaints Advocacy Service (ICAS) , delivering advocacy support across the Eastern region from 2002.

We were pleased to be recognised for our good work and to regain the ICAS contract for this region from April 2006, and at the same time were delighted to be awarded the ICAS contract for both the London and the West Midlands regions, signifcantly expanding our operations.

POhWER was one of the original pilot providers of the Independent Mental Capacity Advocacy (IMCA) service in 2006 and following a successul pilot were rewarded in 2007 with 9 contracts to provide this service across 18 Local Authority areas.

POhWER aims to provide a responsive, accessible and client focused service. Our services are provided through a variety of routes including through a telephone advocacy service, home visits, a range of outreach advocacy surgeries in the community, and outreach surgeries, for example in Mental Health Acute Hospital settings.

A Quality Service

POhWER is committed to providing quality advocacy services.

We originally achieved Investors in People (IIP) status in 2002 demonstrating our commitment to our staff and since then we have successfully retained the award, achieving the updated and more stretching standards most recently in 2009.

POhWER established the POhWER Accreditation Vocation Award (PAVA) to enable advocates to achieve a recognised advocacy training award and to ensure our advocates work consistently to the highest standards.

We are holders of the Legal Services Quality Mark for General Help.
POhWER is a charitable company, managing its finances and services in the best interests of those who use POhWER’s Service.

POhWER's reputation for good quality advocacy services continues to impress our clients and commissioners alike and our range of advocacy services continues to expand year on year.

| Back to top |

image: Related links

Read more about our Trustees

Change Text Only Settings

Graphic version of this page