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Renfrewshire Council Plan 2008 - 2012 Adult Protection website gets online accolade
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A website set up to raise awareness about the abuse suffered by vulnerable adults has been rated amongst the top 10% on the Internet by cyber specialists urlspy. The www.adultprotection.tv site was built by a consortium of 24 Scottish councils as part of a hard-hitting national TV advertising campaign. It acts as an information gateway for adults who are at risk of being harmed or who know someone in danger.
However, Tim Huntingford, the Independent Chair of the Renfrewshire Adult Protection Committee, isn't letting the news go to his head, "It is excellent news that the www.adultprotection.tv site is rated in the top 10% on the Internet but we will be keeping this accolade in perspective. There are 255million websites worldwide!"
However, Tim Huntingford, the Independent Chair of the Renfrewshire Adult Protection Committee, isn't letting the news go to his head, "It is excellent news that the www.adultprotection.tv site is rated in the top 10% on the Internet but we will be keeping this accolade in perspective. There are 255million websites worldwide!"
The site is currently resting at 20,505,885th place in the world rankings and 2,344,792nd place in the UK charts.
Tim Huntingford said, "While we can take a light-hearted look at these figures there is a very serious message behind this website. The important figure from urlspy is that over 450 people a month visit www.adultprotection.tv looking for help and advice about the physical, emotional, sexual and financial abuse suffered by vulnerable adults in Scotland every day.
"Everyone knows that children need to be protected but people don't realise that sometimes adults need protecting too. They can become frail through old age or develop dementia or Alzheimer's disease. And all too often there is someone ready to take advantage, frequently a member of the person's own family."
Research carried out by Mencap, the mental health charity, shows that people with a learning disability, in particular, suffer an appalling toll of abuse when they are just going about their daily lives. Nine out of ten people with learning disabilities reported being bullied in the last year with over 30% of them suffering verbal or physical assault every day or every week.
A report by Action on Elder Abuse, also revealed that property and cash worth nearly £8m, including 31 homes, had been stolen from UK pensioners in just one, 12 month period. The figures were generated from 471 calls to the charity's helpline. The report also found that financial abuse against people over 66 is most likely to be committed by their son and/or daughter.
The councils featured on www.adultprotection.tv are: Aberdeen City, Aberdeenshire, Angus, Argyll & Bute, Dundee, East Ayrshire, East Dunbartonshire, East Lothian, East Renfrewshire, Falkirk, Fife, Glasgow, Highland, Inverclyde, Midlothian, Moray, North Ayrshire, North Lanarkshire, Perth & Kinross, Renfrewshire, South Ayrshire, South Lanarkshire, Stirling and West Dunbartonshire.
The www.adultprotection.tv website was built as part of an ongoing TV advertising campaign. The first series of adverts was broadcast in February 2011 with a second round in August 2011. They directed viewers to a freephone number (0300 777 6520), where they can report adult protection concerns, and the website. The TV advert can be viewed on the site.
Press release issued: Thursday 2 February 2012
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