Family Law

The Welsh Government has published statistics regarding the protection of vulnerable adults in Wales for 2012-13. They include information about the volume of safeguarding activity taking place, the characteristics of adults who may be at risk of harm and the locations in which alleged abuse has taken place.

Key results for all referrals for 1 April 2012 to 31 March 2013:

• A total of 7,545 referrals were reported by 21 local authorities. Of these, 3,915 (52%) referrals received met the threshold of significant harm, whereas 2,030 (27%) referrals did not; 1,600 (21%) referrals received were deemed inappropriate.

Key results for completed referrals for 1 April 2012 to 31 March 2013:

• The reported number of completed referrals for adult protection decreased by 15% between 2011-12 and 2012-13.
• Physical abuse and neglect were the most common types of abuse reported in referrals, occurring in 33% and 31% of referrals, respectively.
• 63% of completed referrals were for women and 60% were for people aged 65 and over.
• 39% of victims who alleged abuse lived in their own home.
• Staff were most likely to be alleged responsible for abuse in 2012-13 (41% of referrals) followed by relatives (21%).

Click here to read 'Protection of Vulnerable Adults in Wales, 2012-13'.

Click here to view the datasets.