Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Recommendations
Part 1
Part 1: Download full reference guide
Part 1: Download 2-page explainer
Elder abuse is a long-standing but often overlooked form of family violence and systemic harm. As Victoria’s population continues to age, it is critical that we recognise and respond to it as a serious public health and human rights issue driven by structural power imbalances and social inequality.
Effectively addressing elder abuse means moving beyond individual or neutral approaches to prevention and care. It requires understanding how broader social systems and inequalities shape people’s experiences.
This guide has been developed to support practitioners, policymakers, and organisations across various sectors. These include family violence, aged care, disability, legal, health, housing, and social services, all working to adopt an intersectional approach to elder abuse prevention and response.
It recognises that older people are not a single, uniform group. Their experiences of ageing, care, and abuse are shaped by the intersections of ageism with other systems of oppression such as racism, sexism, ableism, homelessness, classism, intersex stigma, homophobia, and transphobia.
An intersectional lens helps us understand that elder abuse is not necessarily the result of personal conflict or individual circumstances. It is deeply connected to broader social hierarchies that are reinforced in both relationships and institutions. Older people are not inherently vulnerable; rather, their vulnerability is produced through systemic barriers, social exclusion, and the misuse of power by others.
Throughout this guide, we emphasise the importance of structural analysis, inclusive practice, and systemic accountability. We also highlight the need to challenge assumptions in mainstream service models and respond to the specific needs of communities that are often overlooked, such as migrants and refugees, the diverse community of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex, queer, and asexual people (LGBTIQA+), and people with disability.
COTA Victoria and Seniors Rights Victoria hope this guide supports a shift in how organisations engage with older people – toward approaches that are person-centred, equity-driven, and grounded in justice. We invite all those working in this space to reflect on their own practices, address power imbalances, and commit to meaningful, systemic change.
Part 2
Part 2: Download this full publication as a PDF
This publication presents Part 2 of the Intersectionality in Elder Abuse Reference Guide, building on Part 1, which considered the impact of disability, gender, linguistic and cultural diversity, and LGBTQIA+ identities on people’s exposure to ageism, discrimination, and barriers to elder abuse support. In this part, the guide pays specific focus to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, geography, accessibility and communication needs, social connectedness, and housing insecurity. We also include discussions on older people with additional care needs, carers, and people with disability or compromised decision-making ability.
The guide highlights that elder abuse is influenced by system inequalities and emphasises that older people are not a homogenous group; with experiences shaped by the intersections of ageism, discrimination and disadvantage amongst other factors.
In combination, the Intersectionality in Elder Abuse Reference Guides are designed to support policymakers, practitioners, and organisations in adopting an intersectional lens when developing and delivering elder abuse prevention and response. It does this by identifying the role system marginalisation plays in the prevalence, prevention, response and recovery to and from abuse.
We acknowledge the guide cannot fully capture the diversity or complexity of lived experiences of older people in Victoria, nor can it fully apply across other cultural or policy contexts. The guide is therefore intended as a starting point for further discussion and engagement.
Part 3
Part 3: Download “Resource guide for individuals and community services”
Part 3: Download “Practice guide for government services and organisations”
The abuse and mistreatment of older people, commonly referred to as elder abuse, is a prevalent and growing issue in Australia. The consequences of elder abuse are significant: often causing significant psychological, financial, physical, and social harm to older people. These consequences can lead to premature mortality, broken relationships, a heightened risk of revictimisation, and reduced quality of life.
Elder abuse, and other forms of mistreatment towards older people, are heavily driven by ageism and largely occurs within families and other trusted relationships. Consequently, elder abuse often goes undetected, unreported, or undisclosed. This is especially true for those who face overlapping forms of marginalisation due to intersecting identity factors that reduce their access to, or trust in, support systems and services.
The Intersectionality in elder abuse reference guide part 3 is a resource guide that responds to the insights and advice relating to elder abuse detection, prevention, response, and recovery that is outlined in parts 1 and 2. It provides practical advice to support the detection of and response to elder abuse, particularly for those who face overlapping forms of marginalisation.
Recommendations for application
Download recommendations as a PDF
In 2025-2026, we committed to the development of a multi-part research guide on intersectionality in elder abuse. The Intersectionality in Elder Abuse Reference Guides (IRG) considered how overlapping characteristics and experiences of marginalisation affect the risk, presentation of, and the effectiveness of responses to, elder abuse across Victorian communities.
Informed by the case work of SRV, members of the Victorian Elder Abuse Strategic Alliance, and numerus other ageing and family violence-based organisations, the IRG paints a picture of the experiences of, and opportunities to mitigate the risks faced by, those who have or continue to experience discrimination beyond ageism.
Drawing on the findings of our IRG, this briefing provides nine recommendations to the Victorian Government, to support prevention and response initiatives to meet the demand within communities who face overlapping types of risk.
These document were produced by COTA Victoria and Seniors Rights Victoria, in consultation with the Ethnic Communities Council of Victoria, Safe + Equal, Switchboard, and the Victorian Council of Social Services. Examples and case studies, provided by Seniors Rights Victoria, have been anonymised.