NYAS are delighted to have renewed our advocacy partnership with POhWER to continue delivering general mental health advocacy to patients at Priory Group hospitals across the UK.

We will continue to work in conjunction with POhWER, the largest provider of adult advocacy services in the UK, to continue to deliver advocacy services to young people and adults at Priory Group mental healthcare hospitals and settings in England, Wales and Scotland, commencing in January 2021.

Whilst the partnership has been delivering advocacy expertise to Priory Group since 1st February 2016, this new agreement has increased the service provision to deliver more than 869 hours of advocacy per week, which previously stood at 669 hours per week. Priory Group has the largest network of independent mental healthcare hospitals and clinics in the UK.

All of the mental health advocates provided by the NYAS/POhWER partnership are specialist advocates who are professionally trained to understand the specific needs of Priory Group’s patients. They ensure that patients who are admitted to inpatient settings are given a voice to make sure their rights are upheld. Advocates provide support to people with mental health issues and learning disabilities at times when it is important for their wishes and opinions to be heard and their feelings expressed, for instance, representing them during discharge meetings, ward rounds and at multi-disciplinary team meetings.

Jamie Pope, NYAS Chief Operating Officer for Children and Family Services England said, “We are delighted that our existing contract has been renewed for a further two years and look forward to NYAS continuing a strong and effective partnership with both the Priory Group and our partner provider POhWER.

“Having a mental health issue can mean your voice often goes unheard but through our work with the Priory Group, we are able to make a positive impact by ensuring rights are upheld and people with mental health issues are heard and their wishes and feelings taken seriously.”

Paul Cowans, Specialist Director for Priory Group comments; “We are delighted to announce, following a robust procurement procedure, that we have renewed our contract with NYAS and POhWER to provide general advocacy services for our healthcare hospitals.”