Ending the silence on older victims of rape

Many people over 60 in the UK are victims of sexual violence, according to Durham University research. Despite the pervasive stereotypes of what constitutes a "real rape" - a young woman being attacked by a stranger - the research has uncovered that older people are victims too. The study shows that people over 60 are more likely to be raped by an acquaintance either in their own home or a care home. Influenced by the research, the Office for National Statistics is now trialling the collection of data on sexual violence for the over 60s in its Crime Survey for England and Wales. Previously, the survey only collected data on sexual and domestic violence for those up to the age of 59. Invisible crime The issue of rape and sexual assault of people over 60 was largely unrecognised before Dr Hannah Bows began to search for statistics on sexual violence against older people in the UK as part of her PhD in the School of Applied Social Sciences at Durham. In recognition of her work, Dr Bows was a finalist for Outstanding Early Career Impact in the ESRC Celebrating Impact Prize 2017 .