Hourglass weaad 2026

WEAAD 2026

"BETTER UNDERSTOOD. STILL OVERLOOKED."

World Elder Abuse Awareness Day 2026 Campaign Launch

 

As we mark the 20th anniversary of World Elder Abuse Awareness Day, we reflect not only on how far society has come in recognising the abuse of older people, but also on how far we still have to go.

 

Twenty years ago, the abuse of older people was hidden behind closed doors. It was misunderstood, minimised and rarely spoken about. Today, there is greater awareness than ever before. More professionals recognise the signs, more families understand the risks, and more victim-survivors are seeking help from Hourglass.

 

Progress is important. But it is not enough. Awareness alone does not protect older people.

 

At Hourglass, we still hear every day from older victim-survivors who feel invisible to the systems designed to protect them. People experiencing coercive control from an adult child. Older women trapped in abusive relationships after decades of harm. Older men isolated, manipulated and financially exploited. Victim-survivors living with dementia, disability or poor health, often dependent on their abuser for care and support, whose experiences are too often misunderstood or overlooked entirely.

 

Despite twenty years of progress driven by committed professionals, campaigners and policymakers, older victim-survivors still remain too often side-lined and ignored.

 

That is why our message this World Elder Abuse Awareness Day is simple but urgent: Better Understood. Still Overlooked.

 

This campaign - THEN. NOW. NEXT. - is about confronting those realities through honest reflection and meaningful dialogue, while challenging ourselves to ask what must happen next  and what we must do to make it happen.

 

Then. Now. Next.

 

The next twenty years cannot simply be about better understanding the abuse of older people. They must be about creating real change towards a safer ageing society.

 

This WEAAD, we ask you to join us on this journey.

  • Follow us on social media
  • sign up to our newsletter
  • support older victim-survivors through a donation
  • and take the OATH to show your commitment.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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