GambleAware to fund critical research on ethnic and female gambling harms 

GambleAware has called for the launch of two new research projects which will examine the ‘lived experience of gambling harm amongst marginalised communities and women’.

The safer gambling research, education and treatment charity will fund each project with an investment of £250,000 to secure deeper insights and new evidence on gambling harm impacts within the two groups.   

As communicated in its response to the Gambling Act review, GambleAware underlined that current UK gambling research is limited on its evidence with regards to gambling harm on ethnic communities and female gamblers.

Of concern, GambleAware stated that existing evidence has revealed that ethnic minority communities are less likely to access national treatment services when compared to white communities.

With regards to female gamblers, current findings indicate that participation in gambling and the rate of women who experience gambling disorder is increasing more quickly than amongst men, ‘for reasons that remain unclear’.  

“GambleAware is seeking bids from consortia and multidisciplinary teams that may include research agencies and/or academics and institutions; and anticipates that the winning bids will take a mixed-methods, multidisciplinary and multi-sector approach to achieve the aims of the research programmes,” GambleAware’s statement read.

New evidence accrued from the research projects will be used by GambleAware to inform its policy making and its commissioning practices, with a view to strengthen the UK National Strategy on gambling harm treatment support for all communities.  

The Charity will host individual ‘engagement days’ for both projects, providing stakeholders with a breakdown of research objectives for interested parties.

The dates are as follows:

• Wednesday 5 May,  2.00-3.15pm: Women and gambling research programme.
• Wednesday 12  May, 2.00-3.15pm; Minority communities and gambling research programmes

The closing date for both submissions is Monday 7th June – interested parties should email [email protected].