Cover; Half Title; Series Page; Title Page; Copyright Page; Table of Contents; List of illustrations; Foreword; Acknowledgements; 1 Introduction; The ageing population and risk of violence; Invisible older victims: research and UK policy context; 'Real rape' and older women; Researching sexual violence against older people: a feminist gerontology framing; Book structure and chapter overview; 2 Mapping the existing knowledge about sexual violence against older people; Extent and nature of sexual violence against older people; Elder abuse; Domestic violence; Sexual violence

Nature and characteristics of victimisationRisk factors for sexual violence in later life; Impacts, support needs and barriers to disclosing sexual violence; Impacts of sexual violence on older women; Support needs; Barriers to disclosing sexual violence and accessing support; Perpetrator characteristics and motivations; Conclusion; 3 The extent and nature of serious sexual violence against older people in the UK; Method; The extent, nature and characteristics of recorded cases; Victim and perpetrator gender; Perpetrator and victim age groups; Victim and perpetrator relationship

Victim and perpetrator ethnicityLocation of sexual offences; Serial sex offenders; Links between the rape and another recorded offence; Conclusion; 4 The impacts, support needs and gaps in service provision for older survivors: views of practitioners; Interviews with practitioners; Participant demographics (sexual violence practitioners); Practitioners had limited experience of supporting older survivors; Impacts of sexual violence on older survivors; There were overlapping challenges in terms of accessing support and providing support; Physical challenges; Psychological challenges

Societal challengesLife experiences can mean some older survivors have high levels of resilience; Challenges with the criminal justice system; Overcoming these challenges; A number of gaps in current service provision were identified; Views of age-related practitioners; Conclusion; 5 Experiences of sexual violence as an older woman: case studies of survivors; Interviewing survivors; Winnie; Jennifer; Mary; Conclusion; 6 Conclusions; The extent and nature of sexual violence against older people in the UK; Practitioners' experiences of supporting older survivors

The experiences of older survivorsA continuum of violence across the life course; Minimisation of their experiences; 'Real rape' myths underpin how women made sense of their experiences; Physical and emotional impacts; Experiences and range of support services; Support from friends and family; Experiences of the criminal justice system; Age-relatedissues; Developing a feminist analysis of violence against older women; Concluding thoughts; References; Index