GambleAware has unveiled two new responsible gambling initiatives.
The UK charity, GambleAware, has launched two new safer gambling initiatives to help raise awareness for the National Gambling Treatment Service and its Safer Gambling Campaign.
The new initiatives
With the return of football in the UK following the coronavirus shutdown, the first of GambleAware’s campaigns will focus on ensuring sports bettors aware of the risks of impulsive sports wagering.
The campaign will focus on encouraging people to think twice before betting, building upon the charity’s existing #BetRegret initiative. The campaign’s new content will run on Sky’s YouTube channel, Twitter page and other digital platforms.
At the same time, GambleAware will promote the National Gambling Treatment Service by running new advertisements across digital platforms, radio broadcasts, national and regional press through July and August.
The campaign will the tag line ‘Start to regain control’ and the campaign will highlight the all-consuming nature of gambling. This campaign will also use the line, “when you’re there, but not there.”
The content in this campaign will focus on how people who suffer from gambling problems can often feel disconnected from their family and friends but will promote how the treatment is easy to access and help them overcome gambling-related problems.
The campaigns will be targeted at men between the ages of 25 and 54-years-old but will focus on men in the 25-34 age range.
GambleAware also aims to boost the awareness of the support available to help people with moderate risky gambling behaviour, and to treat those who suffer from problem gambling. In addition to this, the charity aims to increase the knowledge of the signs that someone may be suffering from a gambling problem.
Calls for government to ensure consumers can block gambling transactions
This news comes after GambleAware called on the government, financial institutions, and regulatory bodies to ensure all consumers have the ability to block gambling transactions after a recent study found that 28m personal bank accounts do not have access to this function.
The report, A Blueprint for Bank Card Gambling Blockers, was published yesterday and carried out by researchers at the University of Bristol’s Personal Finance Research Centre (PFRC) and found that only eight banks currently offer technology to block gambling transactions.
GambleAware’s report also raised concerns that not all account holders are aware of the blocking tools available to them. According to the report, 43% of respondents in an online survey said they did not know the feature was available.
