Citizens Advice & GambleAware Partner To Tackle Problem Gambling

Problem gambling has turned into a major concern for the United Kingdom and the latest initiative to battle gambling addiction comes from a partnership between GambleAware and Citizens Advice. The two organizations have committed to investing £1.5 million to educate, prevent and limit problem gambling in the UK.

Over 300 independent charities throughout the UK are involved with Citizens Advice, providing free information and help for people with money and legal concerns.

Nine regions in England and Wales will benefit from the project which is also directed towards establishing a network of regional support hubs. Front-line staff working in other fields will also be trained on recognizing problem gambling and offering support to potential victims.

GambleAware has been leading the way in efforts to stamp out gambling-related harm in the UK and has seen a rise in voluntary donations from the gaming industry over the past year. The joint initiative comes after GambleAware announced its support for a new research on the issue, which also received backing from the UK Gambling Commission.

Training to be Extended to Front-line Staff

GambleAware’s Director of Education Dr. Jane Rigbye said the debt advice workforce plays a huge role in reducing the number of people affected by problem gambling. She also thinks it is important that public-facing staff are included in training programs to identify possible signs of gambling-related harm as they are the ones who come in contact with people on a daily basis.

Principal directives set out in the joint initiative include training Citizens Advice debt advisors on identifying and giving support to consumers who are suffering or may be at risk of problem gambling, referring at risk consumers to any available specialist help and extending resources and training to customer facing staff.

Charity Execs Positive About New Project

Chief Executive of Citizens Advice Gillian Guy has high hopes for the two-year project, saying he is confident their staff will make a difference to the lives of people currently suffering from the impact of problem gambling. Relationship breakdown and increased debt are two practical problems victims have to deal with as a result of gambling addiction.

A six-year trial run by GambleAware in partnership with the Newport Citizens Advice Gambling Support Service turned out to be successful. The next phase is the two year partnership which will look to address the problems and concerns of those dealing with addiction all across the UK.