GambleAware announces £2m funding to support long-term gambling harm recovery
Funding issued by the charity’s Aftercare Funding Programme will be used to deliver additional support as part of a person’s ongoing recovery
GambleAware has announced that it will give £2m in funding to 10 organisations across the UK specialising in assisting the long-term recovery of individuals who have experienced gambling-related harm.
The charitable body’s Aftercare Funding Programme (AFP) will issue the funding, which will then be used to deliver additional support people may require as part of their recovery.
The 10 organisations chosen underwent a selection process involving a panel of experts, two of whom had direct experience of living with gambling-related harm.
Anna Hargrave, GambleAware’s chief commissioning officer, said: “Enabling people to access treatment and support to reduce or stop their gambling is essential. But there is less known about how to ensure this recovery can be sustained over the long term.
“This is why our Aftercare Funding Programme was set up to fund projects which support recovery for people to help them rebuild their lives,” Hargrave added.
All organisations applying for the funding had to demonstrate how they have helped people recover from gambling-related harm, including areas such as supporting a person’s mental wellbeing, improving lifestyle choices and practical skills as well as boosting self-confidence and esteem.
Two funding levels were made available: £150,000 for smaller or newer organisations, and £350,000 for larger, well-established firms to further develop their work.
One of the organisations chosen was GamCare, which operates the National Problem Gambling Helpline and functions as a champion of safer gambling standards among operators, as well as the Brighton and Hove and the Wirral arms of the Citizens Advice Bureau.
Another organisation selected, Cyrenians, has revealed it will use the funding to start one-on-one and trauma-informed support groups for those within the homeless community in the Scottish capital of Edinburgh.
Amy Hutton, Cyrenians’ director of services, said: “We are delighted to have the opportunity to develop our responses to the impacts of gambling amongst people experiencing homelessness.
“This is an often-neglected issue, for which we are keen to develop a model of care and support which acknowledges homelessness as a complicating factor while drawing upon the wider principles of lasting recovery,” she added.
Another applicant for the funding, the Bristol-based acta Community Theatre, said it will use the funding to create a peer support group which will be open to people of all races and backgrounds.
Oliver Jones, acta Community Theatre director, commented: “We are extremely grateful to receive funding from the Aftercare Funding Programme as we know from experience the huge impact problem gambling can have on individuals and their families.”