Kindred provides an advocacy service for parents of children aged 0 to 18 years, with complex needs who have difficult situations to resolve with regard to the care of the child. You may be trying to find the right school for your child, be facing difficult decisions about medical care, or believe that you have not received the right level of benefit. To find out if you are eligible for our advocacy service please telephone 0800 031 5793 (choosing option 1, then option 1 again). “Independent Advocacy is a way to help people have a stronger voice and to have as much control as possible over their own lives. Independent Advocacy organisations are separate from organisations that provide other types of services. An independent advocate will not make decisions on behalf of the person/group they are supporting. The independent advocate helps the person/group to get the information they need to make real choices about their circumstances and supports the person/group to put their choices across to others. An independent advocate may speak on behalf of people who are unable to do so for themselves.” – Scottish Independent Advocacy Alliance Advocacy is at the core of Kindred’s services. We provide: support and information with regard to school placements applications for trust grant funds for specialist equipment and grants required for caring assistance with applying for benefits such as Disability Living Allowance advocacy support for statutory meetings with health – including Child and Adolescent Mental Health (CAMHS), social work, education and housing a variety of parent support groups access to therapeutic services and a listening ear for parents and carers These services are available from our projects: Helpline (for Edinburgh and the Lothians) Kindred at Edinburgh’s Royal Hospital for Sick Children Kindred in Fife Transitions – The Right Direction