Advocacy is important for ensuring the rights of people with disability are upheld. It is also important for fostering autonomy, dignity and self- determination for people with disability.

Advocacy services seek to support people with disability to exercise their rights and freedoms through: the provision of individual advocacy support; supporting people to advocate for themselves; and/or influencing long-term, systemic changes to ensure that rights and freedoms are attained and upheld.

Disability advocacy is also essential in creating a more inclusive society. It helps to remove the discrimination and barriers that people with disabilities face when trying to access essential services and be active members of their communities.

Responsibility for funding disability advocacy in Australia is currently shared between the Commonwealth and state and territory governments, with the exception of South Australia.

There are also a small number of advocacy organisations that are not funded by government.

Source: Review of the National Disability Advocacy Program, Department of Social Services, July 2017