Northern Ireland GPs to Receive Training to Spot Signs of Gambling Harm for Young People

• Leading gambling support charity can provide help to young people harmed by gambling across Northern Ireland for the first time
• GPs at Quayside Medical Practice in Derry are the first trained to identify harms and refer into specialist support services
• Free training available now as part of the Young People’s Gambling Harm Prevention Programme

Free training is now available for frontline professionals supporting young people across Northern Ireland, including GPs, to help them spot signs of gambling harms and refer into specialist support for young people who are gambling, as well as those impacted by someone else’s gambling.

GamCare, the largest provider of advice and support on gambling related harms across Great Britain, has expanded its Young People’s Gambling Harm Prevention Programme to Northern Ireland – including dedicated support services for under 18s.

Where issues with gambling are identified for young people, GamCare is now able to offer tailored support for under 18s via specially trained youth practitioners across the whole of the UK.

GamCare and the Young Gamers and Gamblers Education Trust (YGAM) are working together to deliver an evidence-based programme of education and training for young people across England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Both YGAM and GamCare work closely with other agencies providing education in Scotland.

Anna Hemmings, CEO at GamCare, says: “The expansion of our work into Northern Ireland is a fantastic step for this programme. The Young People’s Gambling Harm Prevention Programme will give young people in Northern Ireland the opportunity to explore how gambling might be affecting them in a safe and trusted environment, and will give them the tools to make informed decisions. Better links with health and social care services will help us to connect more people with the support that they need to tackle gambling harms.

GamCare is able to provide dedicated support to suit young people’s needs, ensuring that every young person worried about gambling is listened to and fully supported. Young people and their loved ones can contact us around the clock on Freephone 0808 80 20 133, and young people can also access live chat through our dedicated site www.BigDeal.org.uk.”

Caroline Morewood, Senior Social Work Practitioner at Quayside Medical Practice says: "I found GamCare’s training really beneficial in my role as a social worker in a Multi-Disciplinary Team in a GP Surgery. The training enabled me to increase my knowledge of this area and learn about support available to young people affected by gambling."

Antoinette McDaid, who also attended the first round of training, says: “I found GamCare’s training well delivered, with excellent information. I now have a better understanding of causes and impact of gambling than before the training, and the support available to young people and adults with gambling difficulties/addiction.”

For dedicated information for young people, parents and teachers about gambling harms and how to access workshops and training, please visit www.BigDeal.org.uk

ENDS

Media Enquiries

For more information contact:

Catherine Sweet, GamCare Head of Marketing and Communications:
catherine.sweet@gamcare.org.uk / +44 (0)207 801 7028

Notes to Editors

GamCare – Working to minimise gambling-related harm

• GamCare operates the National Gambling Helpline on Freephone 0808 8020 133 or via web chat at www.gamcare.org.uk, providing information, advice and support for anyone affected by gambling harms across England, Scotland and Wales, funded by GambleAware. Advisers are available 24/7, every day of the year. The Helpline is also available for young people across Northern Ireland.
• GamCare is part of the National Gambling Treatment Service, funded by GambleAware.
• The Young People’s Gambling Harm Prevention Programme is delivered in collaboration with YGAM: https://www.gamcare.org.uk/our-work/youth-outreach-programme/
• A dedicated website for young people, parents and teachers can be found at www.BigDeal.org.uk
• GamCare’s Young People’s Service is for anyone aged 11-18 who is worried about their own gambling or about the gambling of someone close to them. We have a dedicated team of practitioners providing safe and effective support to young people.
• Our free, flexible and confidential service is designed to ensure each young person receives the most appropriate support for them. We offer information, advice and guidance, Brief Interventions, and self-help tools, as well as structured interventions tailored to each young person’s needs. We will ensure every young person worried about gambling is listened to and fully supported.
• Our free Young People Service can be accessed through:
• 0808 8020 133 – 24 hours, seven days a week
• Using live chat via BigDeal.org.uk
• YoungPeopleService@gamcare.org.uk
• We also provide guidance and support for parents and professionals who are worried about a young person.  Professionals supporting young people, parents/carers and young people can refer into our service. Anyone who would like to contact the service can get in touch via: YoungPeopleService@gamcare.org.uk or 02020926964.
• GamCare delivers free gambling awareness workshops to young people and professionals as part of the Young People’s Gambling Harm Prevention Programme. To book a workshop or find out more email: hello@bigdeal.org.uk

More information on the Northern Ireland Gambling Prevalence Survey (2016) can be found at https://www.communities-ni.gov.uk/news/2016-northern-ireland-gambling-prevalence-survey-published