Domestic abuse in later life is a neglected area in policy and practice when compared to the plethora of policy guidance, service development and professional training tailored towards supporting other age groups (ADASS, 2013).

Although older people may experience similar attitudinal barriers as younger victim-survivors of domestic abuse do when accessing formal help (McGarry and Simpson, 2011), their experiences are further compounded by ageist responses from service providers (Harbison, 2008). Age discrimination impacts on older people’s willingness to seek help and the ability of agencies to provide an age-sensitive yet non-ageist response.