Advocacy is Essential When Systems Let People Down
People who come to ADACAS are often navigating several systems at once. Someone might be balancing a combination of disability supports, mental health care, health appointments, service providers or school-related issues for their children, all while trying to keep daily life steady for themselves and/or their family. Every system has its own language and expectations, but individuals experience everything at once. Although it would be ideal to see services that speak to one another and better align, the reality is that the expectation and pressure to connect the dots between competing systems fall on the individual. Advocacy is essential when systems let people down.
Across our advocacy work in 2025, the complexity of people’s situations has become more visible. Demand for support rose sharply, often took longer and required deeper involvement because issues were layered, intersectional and spanning multiple systems. The number of people needing help with disability-related education matters increased significantly, as did requests for support with housing, legal issues, health systems and mental health services. Many people were struggling just to get access to a service to meet their needs, often finding nothing either available or in existence.
The emotional toll of disconnected systems or a lack of service provision is real. People talk about trying to make sense of letters filled with unfamiliar terminology, struggling to challenge decisions when explanations are unclear, or feeling pressured to agree to something they do not fully understand. This can erode certainty, especially when someone is already coping with health or life-impacting changes. What begins as a paperwork challenge or a communication problem often becomes a wellbeing issue, and this is where advocacy matters most.
But, even in the most complex situations, the people who reach out to us are determined to show resourcefulness and an ability to keep moving forward while holding onto what matters most. Supported decision-making is quietly woven through our advocacy process, giving people the time and tools to decide what feels right for them, and gain an understanding of any consequences of the decision they are considering. Ultimately, they have a greater sense of control and understanding of a situation.
ADACAS takes a direct approach in promoting the voice and issues of the people we provide advocacy to. We undertake systemic advocacy through ongoing relationships with a range of non-government organisations and by participating in a variety of government roundtable discussions and forums. Our coordinated efforts highlight the issues that clients express, to collectively influence fairer, more responsive and accountable systems that reduce the burden on the individual.
Individual conversations also help reveal broader patterns in the systems people rely on. ADACAS has strengthened its ability to turn these insights into action by implementing policy and impact frameworks to support systemic advocacy. Our enhanced client record management system also helps us capture real-time outcome data so recurring issues can be identified early and raised with the appropriate decision makers. Our systemic advocacy is strengthened by our partnership with the Older Persons Advocacy Network (OPAN) and the Disability Advocacy Network Australia (DANA) who collect information from across the country and share this with the Commonwealth Government.
ADACAS is part of the solution. People seek advocacy when systems aren’t working, so our early detection helps government and supports individuals, particularly when they are in crisis. Until systems can be better aligned to support people to navigate easily and clearly from one support service to another or to ensure there are adequate services available for individuals, the demand for advocacy will continue to grow at an alarming rate. That’s why advocacy is essential when systems let people down.
ADACAS continues to support people with clarity and partnership, so that decisions are informed, rights are upheld and every person can hold onto their dignity.
