By Lucy Ashton
Hourglass is a 24/7 helpline supporting older people and their families dealing with abuse and neglect. It is the first service of its kind in Scotland and it has just launched, as a result of a 46 per cent rise in elder abuse calls during the pandemic, Jackie Baillie told First Minister Nicola Sturgeon last week.
Elder abuse – people maltreating old folk – is an under supported and under reported area. Given that shocking statistic, the Hourglass helpline will be a very welcome resource.
Jackie Baillie said: “Hourglass is funded by the Home Office to provide a service in England. Will the First Minister agree to meet Hourglass and consider providing support for that valuable service in Scotland?”
The First Minister replied: “Services such as Hourglass are very important. Elder abuse is awful, and the pressures of the pandemic are understood by all of us. I am happy to have the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care meet or talk to Hourglass, to see what the Scottish Government can do to support it.”