Our History
We were established in 1995 to deliver a short-term advocacy project to provide a voice for vulnerable people in the Preston community.
Following the success of the project, a new board of Trustees was formed in 1999 with Preston Advocacy being registered as a charity.
We delivered advocacy services supporting the elderly, individuals with dementia and mental health issues before collaborating with two additional advocacy services in Lancashire to form a consortium to provide an IMCA (Independent Mental Capacity Advocacy) service in 2007.
The charity was renamed ‘Central Advocacy’ in 2009 to reflect the expansion of our advocacy service provision. In March 2012, the organisations were successfully awarded the Action for Advocacy Performance Mark before a change in health authority and clinical commissioning resulted in the consortium being disbanded.
In 2013, Independent Community Advocacy Network North (ICANN) was founded by our existing Trustees and staff. There was a return to focusing on delivering advocacy services centred on the needs of the local community.
Currently, we deliver a range of projects across Lancashire, providing professional and experienced advocacy support to the most vulnerable in our local community.
Our Impact
Our strategy focuses on 3 core areas of impact, developing a foundation from which we measure our success, evaluate our performance, and keep building on it:
1.
Building resilient communities – we empower individuals and communities to both overcome adversity and make positive choices to thrive.
2.
Good health and wellbeing – we improve quality of life for all through collaboration and promotion of positive life choices.
3.
Reduced inequality – we identify, understand, address, and raise awareness of inequalities in the community.
Work with us
Meet the ICANN team
Janet
Chief Executive Officer
Zoe
Advocacy & Training Coordinator
Julie
Fundraising and Business Development Support
Shirley
Senior Administrator
Glenn
Social Media and Fundraising Support
Meet the ICANN team
Janet
Chief Executive Officer
Shirley
Senior Administrator
Julie
Fundraising and Business Development Support
Glenn
Social Media and Fundraising Support
Zoe
Advocacy and Training Coordinator
Our Advocates
Aneesah
Advocate
Jim
Advocate
Rebekah
Advocate
Jan
Advocate
Lorraine
Advocate
Amy
Advocate
Emma
Advocate
Meet our trustees
Pamela Hill
Chair
Tim Smith
Trustee
Sophia Patel
Trustee
Ray Ellis
Trustee (Honorary)
Michelle Smith
Trustee & Treasuer
What people are saying about ICANN
I would say that being a previous service user has greatly enhanced my volunteer experience in the sense that I have been afforded the opportunity to give talks and presentations to new advocates and volunteers. I truly value what ICANN stands for and represents in terms of assisting vulnerable people who would otherwise be hampered in accessing the appropriate services and help when needed.
While volunteering for ICANN, I have met people from all walks of life and gained many new skills and knowledge. It has helped me appreciate the impact my help can have to someone and therefore my own self-confidence has increased.
Our Partners
