Announced today as part of WA Seniors Week 2020, the availability of support and advice for people experiencing or at risk of elder abuse will be expanded thanks to new State Government funding of $180,000 for the Northern Suburbs Community Legal Centre.
The Northern Suburbs Community Legal Centre operates the Older People’s Rights Service which provides free legal, social and educational assistance to seniors who are experiencing or at risk of experiencing elder abuse.
Funding of $150,000 will enable the Older People’s Rights Service to operate an additional 12 hours per week – including Saturday mornings – over the next year to respond to an emerging increase in elder abuse.
A further $30,000 will go towards the design and implementation of an education and training program for professionals supporting victims of elder abuse in regional and remote areas. The program will be delivered through a series of webinars and mentoring components.
The COVID-19 pandemic has left many seniors in a position where they are vulnerable to elder abuse due to isolation or lack of contact with family and friends, and the State Government has made the prevention of elder abuse a priority for the Seniors and Ageing portfolio.
As stated by Seniors and Ageing and Volunteering Minister Mick Murray:
“To ensure our seniors who are experiencing or at risk of elder abuse are supported, we must make sure they have ready access to support and information – and this additional funding to the Older People’s Rights Service will do just that.
“By extending the hours of the Older People’s Rights Service – including to Saturday mornings – we will make it easier for seniors experiencing or at risk of elder abuse to get help.
“Older people in regional and remote areas can be at higher risk of experiencing elder abuse due to isolation and may also be less likely, or able, to seek help.
“To help address this, a region-specific education and training program for professionals supporting victims of elder abuse in regional and remote areas will be developed.
“One of the biggest challenges in combatting elder abuse is that you can’t always see it – it is an emerging and worrying trend that is slowly surfacing as we move out into the recovery phase of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Elder abuse is far too often kept hidden and underreported, but it cannot be ignored.”
