Resources on addressing sexual assault of older women
Frontline workers across health care, social services, aged care, housing, and law enforcement can access a range of free, reputable resources to better understand and respond to sexual assault against older women. Below, we organise key English-language resources by type – including workshop toolkits, practice guides, training videos, and policy briefs – with direct links and brief descriptions for each.
Each of the resources is openly available online without paywalls, ensuring that practitioners and stakeholders can readily access the information. By utilising these toolkits, guides, training videos, and reports, frontline workers will be better equipped to recognise sexual abuse in later life, deliver age-sensitive support to survivors, and advocate for safer environments for older women.
All sectors – from healthcare providers and social workers to police and aged care staff – have a role to play in breaking the silence around this often hidden form of violence and ensuring that no survivor is overlooked because of her age.
Workshop & Training Toolkits
- “Abuse Can Happen at Any Age” Toolkit (Wales, 2025): A toolkit published by the Welsh Government to help professionals recognise signs of sexual violence and abuse in older people. This resource (part of Wales’s VAWDASV initiative) includes a PDF guide (6 MB) and a discreet printable handout. It was first released in November 2025 and is openly available via the gov.wales site.
- “Tea & Talk” Facilitator Toolkit (Elder Abuse Prevention Ontario, Canada): A community workshop toolkit consisting of 8 modules to engage older adults in discussions about healthy relationships and preventing abuse. One module focuses specifically on elder abuse and sexual harm. Developed in collaboration with a local sexual assault centre, this toolkit equips facilitators with discussion guides and activities to raise awareness and empower seniors. Available via the eapon.ca site.
- #ReadyToListen Project Resources (OPAN, Australia, 2022): A comprehensive set of tools to build aged care staff capacity to prevent and respond to sexual assaults in residential care. Led by the Older Persons Advocacy Network and funded by Australia’s Dept. of Health, it includes the “MAP Guidelines” (outlining 10 practical strategies for providers), posters on recognising assault indicators, a charter on sexual rights and consent, reporting guides, as well as recorded webinars and an e-learning course. These resources are freely downloadable and were created in partnership with advocacy groups for seniors and older women. Available via the opan.org.au site.
Practice Guides & Checklists
- NSW DFSV Resources for Older Women & Women with Disability (Australia, 2025): A suite of practice resources from the NSW Ageing & Disability Commission, designed for frontline workers to better prevent, identify, and respond to Domestic, Family, and Sexual Violence (DFSV) against older women (and people with disabilities). The set includes practical fact sheets on topics such as challenging harmful attitudes, documentation tips, safety planning, police reporting, and responding to disclosures. Notably, it provides a referral checklist to guide practitioners in connecting older survivors with appropriate DFSV support services. All materials are freely available on the ADC website, launched in late 2025.
- “Sexual Abuse of Older Adults” Intervention Guide (EAPO, Canada): Part of a series of elder abuse training guides for service providers, this guide focuses on sexual abuse in later life. It offers definitions, warning signs, interview strategies, safety planning steps, case studies, and legal reporting information specific to older victims. The guide is designed for flexible use in training or reference – sections can be used individually or as a whole – and encourages critical thinking through real-life scenarios. Published by Elder Abuse Prevention Ontario, available in English and French.
- Guide for Supporting Older Women Affected by Sexual Violence (SARSAS, UK, 2022): A practical booklet for professionals who work with older survivors, produced by a consortium of Rape Crisis centres in South West England (funded by Comic Relief). It covers the impact of sexual violence on older women, signs that abuse may be occurring, tips for responding to disclosures, and guidance on helping survivors cope with trauma. This guide emphasises that older women’s needs may differ from younger survivors (e.g. compounded shame or generational attitudes) and offers trauma-informed strategies for effective support. Available via the sarsas.org.uk site.
- Practice Guide: Addressing Violence Against Older Women (Comic Relief/UK, 2022): A “learning from practice” report that distils lessons from seven UK organisations piloting work with older women survivors. It highlights key challenges and what works: for example, services must develop specific knowledge on violence against older women and adopt an intersectional approach in their outreach. It also underscores the importance of multi-agency cooperation and sensitivity to older women’s needs (e.g. addressing ageism within services). This guide is intended to help practitioners improve their responses and includes recommendations for service development. Available on the sarsas.org.uk site.
- Checklist & Guide for Law Enforcement – “Elder Sexual Abuse: The Hidden Victim” (FCASV/OVW, US): A specialised training guide created by the Florida Council Against Sexual Violence, with support from the U.S. Office on Violence Against Women. Aimed at law enforcement and multidisciplinary responders, this 70+ page trainer’s manual provides a curriculum on recognising, responding to, and investigating sexual assaults of older adults. It stresses that elderly victims have unique needs and urges a coordinated community approach (law enforcement, APS, healthcare, etc.) to improve case outcomes. The guide includes interactive components like quizzes, case studies, and response checklists to build practitioners’ skills in the field. Available on the www.justice.gov site.
Training Videos & Multimedia
- “Working with Older Survivors” Video Series (NCALL, US): A collection of short training videos featuring experts on elder abuse and sexual violence, produced by the National Clearinghouse on Abuse in Later Life. Topics include victim-defined advocacy, elder-informed safety planning, and fostering collaboration across agencies, providing a self-paced multimedia learning tool for advocates and service providers. All videos are freely available via NCALL’s website.
- #ReadyToListen Webinars (Australia, 2022): As part of the Ready to Listen project, OPAN hosted a series of educational webinars and seminar recordings for aged care professionals. These videos feature experts (like researchers Dr. Catherine Barrett and Prof. Ann Burgess) explaining how to identify indicators of sexual assault in care settings, the impacts of trauma on older residents, and the requirements of Australia’s Serious Incident Response Scheme (SIRS) regarding sexual assaults. The webinars also guide staff on reporting obligations (when to involve police, etc.) All recordings are accessible on the OPAN site.
- “Lifting Up Voices” Survivor Videos (NCALL, US): A set of powerful first-person video testimonials (with captions) from older survivors of abuse, including sexual assault. Part of NCALL’s public awareness efforts, these videos are useful in training to illustrate the real experiences and resilience of older victim-survivors. They can help frontline workers build empathy and understanding around the often hidden nature of later-life sexual violence. Available through NCALL’s video library.
- Instructional Video Modules (EAPO, Canada): Elder Abuse Prevention Ontario provides an archive of webinar recordings and video scenarios to supplement its written tools. For example, the Raising Awareness in Ethnic Communities manual comes with video case scenarios to illustrate elder abuse situations in a culturally specific context. While not exclusively about sexual assault, EAPO’s video training frequently address sexual abuse in later life and can be a valuable visual training aid for practitioners alongside written guides. Available via Elder Abuse Prevention.
Policy Briefs & Reports
- “The Chilling Silence” Research Report (UK, 2020): A regional research report on the needs and experiences of women aged 55+ who survived sexual violence, produced by SARSAS and partner Rape Crisis centres in Southwest England. This Comic Relief-funded report highlights that older women are often invisible in discourse around sexual violence, despite many having experienced abuse multiple times over their. It provides local and national findings and makes recommendations for police, local authorities, healthcare, and aged care services to improve support for older survivors. The report serves as a briefing document to inform policy-makers and organisations of the gaps and necessary actions in addressing sexual violence against older women. Available via the sarsas.org.uk site.
- World Bank Brief on Violence Against Older Women (2017): An international policy brief that offers a global overview of violence against women in older age, including sexual violence. Part of the VAWG Resource Guide series, this document outlines the causes, types, and consequences of abuse in later life – noting how gender inequality across the lifespan and ageism combine to heighten older women’s vulnerability. It underscores issues like economic insecurity, poor health, and social isolation that increase risk, and calls for integrating older women into violence prevention programs. This high-level brief is useful for understanding the broader context and advocating for inclusive policies, although it is not a hands-on toolkit.
- UN Women Briefing: Measuring Violence Against Women 60+ (2020): A methodological briefing note focusing on how violence against older women (60 years and up) is tracked in surveys and data. It points out that abuse of older women – including sexual abuse – tends to be under-recognised in global and national data, leading to a “hidden” issue. While intended for statisticians and policy planners, this resource highlights the importance of including older age cohorts in research and can inform advocacy by emphasising that violence does not stop at 50. It supports the case for more attention and resources directed toward older survivors at the policy level. Available via the www.who.int site.
- Literature Review on Sexual Assault in Later Life (CNPEA, 2020): A Canadian review (as part of an Access to Justice project) compiling research on prevalence, risk factors, and barriers facing older sexual assault victims, and mapping out prevention strategies. It discusses primary, secondary, and tertiary prevention approaches – from public awareness and staff training to trauma-informed services and interagency collaboration. The review also catalogues existing tools and resources for supporting older survivors. For those seeking an in-depth understanding of current knowledge and gaps, this summary report provides a solid evidence base to guide program development and policy. Available via the cnpea.ca site.
