The views and experiences of learning disability nurses concerning their advocacy education Penny Llewellyn * , Ruth Northway 1 University of Glamorgan, Pontypridd CF37 1DL, United Kingdom Accepted 5 February 2007 KEYWORDS Advocacy; Advocacy education; Learning disability nurses; People with learning disabilities Summary A mixed methods project [Llewellyn, P., 2005. An investigation into the advocacy role of the learning disability nurse. University of Glamorgan, unpublished PhD Thesis] investigated the advocacy role of learning disability nurses. This paper discusses the section concerned with nurses’ advocacy education. Focus groups, interviews and a questionnaire survey enabled nurses from a wide range of grades, seniority and experience to explore their received education in advocacy and their educational requirements concerning their advocacy role. Findings revealed that nurses’ received education in advocacy varied according to the syllabus under which they qualified, with those whose education was influenced by the 1979 Jay Report having the highest incidence of advocacy training. Many learning disability nurses who had received theoretical education did not feel con- fident to advocate for their clients. Many were also unsure of their ability to access independent advocacy services and when it was permissible to do this. Nurse infor- mants expressed a need for ongoing support and training in advocacy relating to The Human Rights Act (1998) and The Disability Discrimination Act (1995); and also spe- cifically in relation to advocacy for clients within their own work area. Most nurses had definite ideas regarding how and by whom their advocacy education and training should be provided.  c 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. Introduction The contemporary move away from the institution- alisation of people with learning disabilities and to- wards their inclusion into mainstream community life has permitted learning disability nurses to progress from a custodial and authoritarian role to- wards enabling and empowering their clients (Mitchell, 2000). They have also learned, through necessity, to advocate on behalf of people with learning disabilities for a fair share of available re- sources (O’Brien and Towell, 2004). Nonetheless, although it is generally accepted that learning 0260-6917/$ - see front matter  c 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.nedt.2007.02.015 * Corresponding author. Tel.: +44 29 20213169. E-mail addresses: pjllewellyn@ntlworld.com (P. Llewellyn), rnorthwa@glam.ac.uk (R. Northway). 1 Tel.: +44 1443 483177; fax: +44 1443 483188. Nurse Education Today (2007) 27, 955–963 intl.elsevierhealth.com/journals/nedt Nurse Education Today