GamCare launches women’s online support group

The group aims to support women affected by someone else’s gambling.

UK.- The responsible gambling charity GamCare has announced the launch of a new online support group for women who are affected by someone else’s gambling. The semi-structured group is named Way Forward and is intended to provide a safe, confidential space for women to share experiences.

Each week of the initiative will focus on different aspects of gambling harm, with meetings to be held via Zoom every Tuesday starting today (October 18). The meetings will be held from 11am to 12.30pm for six weeks and will be led by facilitators with specialist training in supporting women affected by gambling-related harm.

Today’s first session will introduce the initiative and provide an overview of the programme. The first session proper on November 1 will aim to understand gambling addictions and their financial implications. Subsequent sessions will focus on self-care, dealing with guilt, shame, anger or resentment and how to have difficult conversations.

GamCare is also participating in a new educational project with the Young Gamers and Gamblers Education Trust and Fast Forward. The Gambling Education Framework provides evidence-based principles for the delivery of effective gambling education to educators who work with young people aged between seven and 24. The framework is intended for use in formal and informal settings, including schools.

Meanwhile, GamCare has been nominated for the Howard League’s Organisation of the Year prize at its annual Community Awards. The nomination was made to recognise the charity’s work on problem gambling treatment in the Criminal Justice System (CJS).

The Howard League, a body that seeks penal reform, awards prizes to UK organisations that successfully address CJS and penal reform issues. It noted that GamCare’s work made a difference for those in the CJS by providing support and training for various stakeholders.