A new campaign has been launched by the charity Gamble Aware to tackle gambling addiction in Aberdeen. The £100,000 project is designed to increase awareness among Aberdeen residents on the availability of gambling counselling and advice support services.
As part of the campaign, details of the Gamble Aware Helpline will be displayed on buses in the area, and there will also be a series of adverts online and on local radio. Gamble Aware will also be working to raise awareness among local college students,
It has been estimated that around 230,000 people in Scotland have a gambling problem or are at risk of developing addiction, and the pilot scheme in Aberdeen has been created to see how effectively the Gamble Aware message can be promoted, ahead of next year’s nationwide campaign.
Speaking about the campaign, the deputy Chief Executive of Gamble Aware, Iain Corby, said that his organisation had found that only two percent of gambling addicts seek help:
We don’t know if that’s because they don’t know who to turn or, or if they’re just reluctant to. So with this campaign we want to remove the chance that they don’t know how to get help.”
National helpline
Gamble Aware, in conjunction with the RCA Trust, provides several services for people who are concerned about their own gambling or who are worried about the gambling activities of family members or friends. The charity also operates the website BeGambleAware.org, which attracts 2.7 million visitors a year and helps to support the National Gambling Helpline.
According to Corby, many gambling addicts can be helped to get their problem under control through a lengthy telephone conversation, but for some, an online chat or face to face counselling is the best option. Gamble Aware also run a 13-week residential rehab programme.
