An increase in reported incidents of elderly people being abused may be symptomatic of an under-funded and devalued 'Cinderella' service. Mark Tallentire reports.

ABUSE of elderly people in the region's care homes may be much more widespread than previously thought, an expert warned yesterday.

Speaking as The Northern Echo revealed the shocking case of frail pensioners being goaded into hurling foul-mouthed insults at each other, Annie Stevenson, senior policy advisor with Help the Aged, said that official figures were probably "the tip of the iceberg".

In May, Durham County Council published a report, A Hidden Truth, which looked into the extent of domestic abuse in the county.

It showed reported incidents of elder abuse in the county had more than trebled in three years, up from 89 cases in 2003 to more than 340 last year - and that figures were projected to rise even higher.

Meanwhile, a Government-backed report said 342,000 people over 65 were mistreated in private housing last year - that's one in 25 of our older population.

But even this shocking figure may be a conservative estimate.

Three years ago, a House of Commons health committee said the number could be as high as half-a-million.

It seems for some pensioners there is no safe place and few people left to trust:

* Two-thirds of "elder abuse" is said to be committed at home by someone in a position of trust;

* More than a fifth happens in nursing homes and residential care;

l Nearly half of abusers are related to their victims.

Mrs Stevenson said: "This is a hidden issue and 500,000 is only what we see. The real number is probably much higher.

"Elderly people are the most powerless in our society. If they're abused, they have no way out, and it's a lot more widespread than we'd like to think.

"Elder abuse is unpalatable and difficult to deal with, but how we treat elderly people is a measure of how civilised we are as a society.

"We tend to think of elder abuse as being physical violence, but it can take many forms - from sexual abuse to talking over older people or denying them the time they need to do something. There's a huge lack of understanding.

"If it happens in just one care home, it's unacceptable. Everybody has a responsibility to rid it from the system.

"There are homes that provide quality care but, generally, it is a Cinderella service - under-funded and devalued."

Martin Green, who represents about 3,000 care homes in his role as chief executive of the English Community Care Association, said: "The vast majority of care homes provide high-quality care for some of the most vulnerable people in our community and there is no excuse for inhumane or degrading treatment.