Sudbury-based elder abuse charity Hourglass secures vital grant funding to help tackle ‘crisis hiding in plain sight’

Vital funding to help combat the ‘shocking scale’ of financial abuse of older people has been approved for a Sudbury-based charity.

Hourglass – the only charity in the UK dedicated solely to tackling elder abuse – was awarded £7,000 to help support and expand its work across the region.

Within this figure, £5,000 was provided through the East of England Co-op’s Community Cares Fund, alongside a £2,000 grant from Sudbury Town Council.

The money will enable Hourglass to develop its 24/7 helpline, which offers free, confidential advice and support from trained professionals for older victim-survivors of abuse.

The charity recently revealed that calls to its helpline had reached a record high of 75,000 this year, with financial exploitation the most commonly-reported form of abuse.

The funding will also help to grow the charity’s recruitment and training of volunteers, and increase community-based activities, which aim to raise awareness and build partnerships with other organisations.

It comes after Hourglass published new research on the level of economic abuse of elderly people nationwide, coinciding with the annual Safer Ageing Week campaign.

The report revealed that more than £53 million has been stolen from older individuals, with an average financial loss of £87,000 per victim.

In East Anglia alone, more than £500,000 has been stolen, based on reported cases.

Penny Wilby, community fund-raising manager at Hourglass, said: “This latest research is shocking and shows the extent of the problem of economic abuse across the country and East Anglia.

“We are incredibly grateful to the East of England Co-op’s Community Cares Fund and Sudbury Town Council for their vital support.

“These grants enable us to expand our frontline services, raise awareness and provide life-saving support to older people across Suffolk, Cambridgeshire and Essex.

“This funding will have a transformative impact, especially in Sudbury, where we are proud to be based, and where the support of our local community is so important in helping fight abuse.”

Earlier this year, Hourglass described the financial exploitation of older people as a “crisis hidden in plain sight” – but warned that public awareness of the problem remained critically low.

A YouGov poll found that 26 per cent of respondents in England and Wales did not view trying to force an older family member to change their will as abuse.

The same figure also did not consider using a Power of Attorney for personal financial gain to be abuse, according to the same poll.

Danny Tatlow, research and policy officer, added: “The economic abuse of older people is nothing short of an epidemic – one that is in critical need of attention from a research and policy perspective.

“The impact that this abuse is already having is devastating, not just for older victim-survivors but also for their loved ones.

“Without urgent action and investment in specialist support services, we would be letting this abuse go unchecked and, sadly, it will be older people who pay the price.”

The free 24/7 helpline is available by calling 0808 808 8141.