NIACE wins bid for programme against elder abuse Wednesday, January 7, 2009 - 14:27

NIACE - in a partnership led by AGE (the European Older People's Platform) - will be working on a high-profile project to prevent elder abuse against older women.

The project called EUSTaCEA - European Strategy to Combat Elder Abuse against Older Women - will develop a European strategy which will be presented to EU and national policy-makers at a seminar in Brussels, after the project's end in November 2010.

A series of workshops organised by partners in their own countries, will help form the strategy by:

discussing the strategy with older people, older women's organisations and other stakeholders
addressing the specific dimensions of elder abuse, including financial abuse - an area which NIACE is building extensive expertise.

Tony Maltby, NIACE research fellow and project leader, said:

EUSTaCEA is part of the European Commission programme DAPHNE III so it's important that we are involved. The project views elder abuse as a violation of Human Rights and a breach of the EU charter of Fundamental Rights - this is why it has adopted a ‘zero tolerance' approach towards elder abuse.

He continued,

NIACE's contribution will mainly focus on our experience in developing toolkits that serve to highlight the important role that learning plays in preventing elder financial abuse. Through the use of AGE's extensive networks and membership we will involve citizens' groups directly in our work, helping us develop a suitable European strategy. This is essential as the strategy will be presented at a seminar in Brussels involving the European Parliament Intergroup on Ageing, the Social Protection Committee and the European Standardisation Agency amongst others.