Support for women over 55

We support all women of all ages, ethnicity, and sexuality; however, we have recently become involved in a new project looking at the needs and support of women aged 55+. This project and the subsequent awareness campaign were due to a Report called The Chilling Silence, which highlighted the myth that only younger women are raped, sexually assaulted, or abused. You can download a copy of the report here Chilling Silence’ Briefing Paper On Sexual Violence In SW England – January 2020

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As we know women can experience sexual violence at any time of their life. This abuse can happen in many places, including your own home as well as residential care, nursing homes, supported living and retirement villages.   Often the victim is dependent on the perpetrator on a regular basis which can make it extremely difficult to pick up the phone or talk to somebody about the abuse.

If you have experienced something 50 years ago, 5 years ago or 5 days ago. Here at GRASAC, we are here to listen, believe and support you. It is never too late to get the support that you deserve.

Information for professionals

We are also pleased to launch a new guide that we have developed for people who work with or support older women who have experienced rape or sexual abuse at any time in their life. The guide includes information on:
Trauma, older women and the impact of sexual violence
How to respond to someone making a disclosure of sexual violence
What we know about older women and their experiences of sexual violence
You can download a copy of the guide here

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About the project

GRASAC is part of the South West Rape Crisis Centre Partnership who have been working on this project across the South West Region to raise awareness of sexual Violence against older women and to bring about change. This work will continue to be rolled out into 2021. If you would like to get involved in helping develop services for older women, we want to hear from you. For further conformation on the project, awareness campaign, posters and training, please contact us.

The project is funded by Comic Relief.