COTA Victoria & Seniors Rights Victoria

18/08/2026

COTA Victoria and Seniors Rights Victoria support reform to provide greater protection for communications made through closely integrated legal assistance services.

Specifically, we support the establishment of a new category of legal privilege covering communications between clients, lawyers, and social service professionals in closely integrated legal assistance settings.

Read our latest submission in full using the link below.

COTA Victoria and Seniors Rights Victoria support reform to provide greater protection for communications made through closely integrated legal assistance services.

17/08/2026

The latest episode of our podcast is now available!

In it, Golden Days Radio GDR 95.7fm's Peter Thomas speaks with Nola Radiotis, a recipient of the 2025 Victorian Senior of the Year Awards' COTA Victoria Senior Achiever award.

COTA Conversations airs fortnightly on Golden Days Radio, 95.7 fm, on Mondays at 10.15 am as part of Monday Afternoon with Peter Thomas. It's then made available, on-demand, on your podcast player of choice.

Listen to today's episode wherever you get your podcasts.

🔗🔗LINKS🔗🔗
- COTA Conversations on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/cota-conversations/id1679272877
- COTA Conversations on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5oib0tPTQX93LBTDpBk2Fe
- COTA Conversations RSS feed: https://anchor.fm/s/dd201970/podcast/rss

13/08/2026

Often our clients have chosen a trusted relative or friend to manage their finances when they are unable to do so. This trust may be abused, with devastating consequences for the older person.

Read our latest real story using the link below.

Often our clients have chosen a trusted relative or friend to manage their finances when they are unable to do so. This trust may be abused, with devastating consequences for the older person.

09/08/2026

🚨🚨 We're ! 🚨🚨

We're on the lookout for a passionate and experienced Policy and Advocacy Advisor to help drive meaningful social change through evidence-based policy development, stakeholder engagement and strategic advocacy.

This is a fantastic opportunity to join a respected not-for-profit organisation and contribute to reforms that improve the lives of older people across Victoria.

Learn more and apply using the link below.

Help shape policy and advocate for the rights of older Victorians. Join COTA Victoria and drive meaningful social change through evidence-based policy development, system-wide advocacy.

04/08/2026

In making our latest submission, we draw on many years of listening to older Victorians, providing advice and referrals to people seeking our assistance, and delivering several targeted employment support programs funded by the Commonwealth and Victorian Governments.

Read it in full below.

Continuing participation in the paid workforce is an increasing challenge for many Victorians over 50 whom we seek to support and represent.

03/08/2026

Our advocacy is grounded in the experiences of older Victorians. During the 2025–26 financial year, we heard from more than 1,500 older people through a variety of engagements.

Across seven statewide surveys, targeted consultations, community conversations, and engagement with sector partners, we built an evidence base that translated lived experience into policy positions, submissions, research, and recommendations.

Read our full 2025-26 impact report using the link below.

Older Victorians are not a single group with shared experiences, and our work sought to ensure that policies and systems recognise this diversity. This approach underpins the work undertaken by the Policy & Advocacy team, across policy areas outlined in this briefing.

03/08/2026

The latest episode of our podcast is now available!

In it, Golden Days Radio GDR 95.7fm's Peter Thomas speaks with Dave Cox, the recipient of the 2025 Victorian Senior of the Year Awards' Veteran Community Award.

COTA Conversations airs fortnightly on Golden Days Radio, 95.7 fm, on Mondays at 10.15 am as part of Monday Afternoon with Peter Thomas. It's then made available, on-demand, on your podcast player of choice.

Listen to today's episode wherever you get your podcasts.

🔗🔗LINKS🔗🔗
- COTA Conversations on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/cota-conversations/id1679272877
- COTA Conversations on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5oib0tPTQX93LBTDpBk2Fe
- COTA Conversations RSS feed: https://anchor.fm/s/dd201970/podcast/rss

31/07/2026

Are you someone who organises groups for older people in Victoria? Then do we have a free information session for you!

'Find Your People, Fill Your Club: Marketing for seniors groups' is a session designed to help volunteers and groups best market themselves and understand what tools can be used to help potential participants and members find them.

The free session takes place between 2-4 pm on 11 August 2026, and is facilitated by Bella Long, a Melbourne-based business consultant and operational strategist.

Learn more and register for the event using the link below.

Find your people, fill your club! COTA Victoria is proud to offer this session to support older person led groups and clubs.

30/07/2026

The COTA Victoria and Seniors Rights Victoria ‘State of Ageing in Victoria’ Pulse survey provides an up-to-date insight into how older Victorians feel about the upsides and the downsides of their lives in 2026.

The Pulse survey was conducted as an online survey in May-July 2026. Nearly 500 people aged 50 and over shared their views, ranging widely across the age spectrum and across metropolitan, regional, and rural Victoria.

Access this year's survey results using the link below.

The COTA Victoria and Seniors Rights Victoria ‘State of Ageing in Victoria’ Pulse survey provides an up-to-date insight into how older Victorians feel about the upsides and the downsides of their lives in 2026.

29/07/2026

Elder abuse is a prevalent and increasingly recognised issue affecting older Victorians. It can take many forms, including financial, psychological, physical, sexual, social abuse, and neglect, and is often shaped by complex personal, relational, and structural factors.

Our new toolkit has been developed to support practitioners to strengthen their awareness of elder abuse and build their capacity to respond in ways that are effective, respectful, and uphold the dignity, rights, and autonomy of older people.

Access it below.

This toolkit has been developed to support practitioners to strengthen their awareness of elder abuse and build their capacity to respond in ways that are effective, respectful, and uphold the dignity, rights, and autonomy of older people.