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Half of people with
gambling disorder have
not accessed support
Just under half of people
with a gambling disorder
have not accessed
treatment or support,
according to a study by
GambleAware. Of those scoring
above eight on the Problem
Gambling Severity Index (PGSI) –
considered ‘high risk’ – 46 per cent
had not accessed support.
The research, which included
a YouGov survey, found that up to
61 per cent of the population had
gambled in the last 12 months.
Overall, 17 per cent of gamblers
experiencing harm at any level had
accessed support over the last year,
with barriers to seeking treatment
including stigma, reluctance to
admit having a problem and lack
of awareness of available services.
Perceived stigma or shame was cited
as a reason for not accessing support
by 27 per cent of problem gamblers.
In particular, women and people
from BAME communities and lower
socio-economic backgrounds may
‘not be having their treatment and
support needs adequately met’, says
GambleAware. Just under a fifth of
gamblers from lower socio-economic
backgrounds were ‘likely to report
that nothing would motivate them to
seek support’, researchers said, while
women were three times more likely
than men to cite practical barriers like
time, cost or location as reasons for
not accessing treatment. Around 7
‘Sobriety tag’ scheme rolled
out nationwide
THE GOVERNMENT is rolling out
its ‘sobriety tag’ programme for
offenders across England and
Wales, following pilots in London,
Humberside, Lincolnshire and
North Yorkshire. The ankle tags
monitor an offender’s sweat
around the clock to determine
whether alcohol has been
consumed, with courts able to
order people to wear them for
up to 120 days. The programme
will aid rehabilitation by making
people ‘address the causes of
their behaviour’, the government
states, and so reduce alcoholrelated
harm. ‘Smart technologies
like sobriety tags not only punish
offenders but can help turn their
lives around,’ said crime minister
Kit Malthouse.
Courts will be able
to order people
to wear ankle tag
monitors for up to
120 days.
Women were three
times more likely
than men to cite
practical barriers like
time, cost or location
as reasons for not
accessing treatment
per cent of respondents said other
people had also been affected by their
gambling. GambleAware is calling for
services tailored to the needs of groups
less likely to access services, as well as
campaigns to increase awareness and
reduce stigma.
‘This research has shown that there
is a clear need to further strengthen
and improve the existing treatment
and support on offer, to develop routes
into treatment and to reduce barriers
to accessing help,’ said GambleAware
chief executive Marc Etches.
‘Services have to be flexible to meet
the needs of individuals and easy to
access. Working with those with lived
experiences is essential in designing
and promoting access to services, as
well as helping to prevent relapse. It
is important to engage community
institutions including faith groups, to
help make more people aware of the
options available to them and ensure
no one feels excluded from services.’
Treatment needs and gap analysis in
Great Britain at gambleaware.org
One-stop shop
THE SOCIAL INTEREST GROUP (SIG)
has launched a new ‘faster, easier
to navigate and more user-friendly’
website containing all the information
on SIG and its subsidiary organisations
Equinox Care and Penrose Options in
one place. The site includes careers
pages, service user stories and staff
blogs, as well as integrated social
media links. ‘I am pleased that we have
achieved this in the time that we have,’
said group chief executive Gill Arukpe.
‘It is particularly exciting that instead
of three disparate websites of differing
quality, look and feel, there is now one
single site where visitors can find out
about the wonderful work we do to
support our service users.’
Local News
NEW HORIZONS
Alcohol Change UK is
inviting applications for
its New Horizons grants
programme, which will fund
‘fresh, innovative’ research
projects on the theme of
‘groups, communities
and alcohol harm’ with
awards up to £65,000.
Contact NewHorizons@
alcoholchange.org.uk for
more information.
SPECIAL DELIVERY
WDP is partnering with
delivery company Hermes to
make sure its Capital Card
users can receive essential
items such as toiletries
during the pandemic. ‘Our
Capital Card team are doing
everything they can to find
new and innovative ways to
support our service users,’
said WDP chair Yasmin
Batliwala.
BUDDY UP
The Kaleidoscope Project’s
Birchwood residential
detox centre community in
Birkenhead has developed
a ‘sobriety buddy’ initiative
to provide support and
share experiences. ‘We
were becoming acutely
aware that extra support
was needed during the
COVID-19 restrictions,’ said
manager Jo Moore.
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JUNE 2020 • DRINK AND DRUGS NEWS • 5