Advocating for Rights, Dignity & Choice

Illawarra Advocacy is part of a group of disability advocacy organisations throughout Australia. Illawarra Advocacy has a philosophy of upholding rights of people with disability and ensuring equal access to our services. We recognise the disadvantages that may be experienced by people with disability across the Illawarra and Shoalhaven.

We believe that the best advocacy outcomes are delivered by local advocacy organisations. We understand the difficulties faced by people with disability because we live in those regions too and have lived experience which helps to inform our work. Our clients benefit from our extensive network of Trusted Partners and regional contacts which has been formed over the course of our 35 year history.

Following our weekly intake meetings we invite representatives from services of assistance to people with disability to attend our office at 11am for an Elevensies morning tea in which we discuss how best we can work together. We have established a robust Trusted Partner network through our Elevensies initiative including Centrelink, Legal Aid, Trustee and Guardian, DCJ (Housing), local Members of Parliament and a number of other services that directly benefit our clients. Our Trusted Partner network is extensive and allows us to quickly escalate matters of concern for our clients and obtain exceptional results.

Thanks to our Trusted Partner network, we are also fortunate to have Centrelink attend our Wollongong office on a monthly basis to assist our clients with disabilities who have vulnerabilities that prevent them from communicating with Centrelink independently and who benefit from in person support.