Report

ABSG Progress Report on the National Strategy to Reduce Gambling Harms – Year Two

ABSG - Year two Progress Report on the National Strategy to Reduce Gambling Harms

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Published
7 July 2021

Last updated
25 July 2024 - Changes

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Contents

• ABSG Progress Report on the National Strategy to Reduce Gambling Harms – Year Two

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• Executive summary
• Recommendations
• Introduction
• - Introduction
• - Background
• - Impact of coronavirus (COVID-19) on partnership working
• - Trends in gambling
• - Gambling Act Review
• - Online harms
• Delivery and governance
• - Delivery and governance
• - Progress involving people with lived experience of gambling harms.
• - Mixed picture of national strategic co-ordination of implementation
• - Metrics for measuring harm
• - Evaluation of policy
• - Funding
• - Research
• Prevention and education
• - Prevention and education
• - Improved regulatory protections
• - Suicide and gambling
• - Improved profile of gambling harms as a public health issue
• - Increased engagement from the financial services sector
• - Gambling is not yet fully integrated with local public health activity
• - Increased education and awareness raising activity
• Treatment and support
• - Treatment and support
• - Expansion of treatment and support services in new areas
• - The evidence base for treatment is developing but incomplete
• - Need for more integrated treatment services
• - Clarification of referral pathways required
• - Triage and completed treatments
• - Lack of independent quality assurance
• - Follow-up support
• Conclusions
• Annex 1: Priority Metrics for measurement of National Strategy to Reduce Gambling Harms

3 - Impact of coronavirus (COVID-19) on partnership working

ABSG recognises the strain placed on organisations involved in delivering the National Strategy – particularly those responsible for healthcare and social care, and public health where resources have been re-directed to fighting the effects of the pandemic.

Coronavirus (COVID-19) has made organisations more aware of the possibilities to deliver services remotely. In some circumstances, services have been expanded using online delivery, and local expertise has been accessible nationally.

It is important to ensure that actions to prevent gambling harms are included in the recovery strategies now being put in place as we move out of the third national lockdown. Coronavirus has increased national awareness of health inequalities and the need for a public health response; therefore, it is essential that the role of gambling harms is considered in plans to address these¹⁴.

References

¹⁴ (Pages 5-14) Recover, restore, renew – Chief Medical Officer for Scotland, Annual Report 2020-21 (opens in new tab). NHS Scotland, March 2021

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Trends in gambling

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Last updated: 25 July 2024

Show updates to this content

Following an audit the 'Recover, restore, renew – Chief Medical Officer for Scotland, Annual Report 2020-21' link has been updated.

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