Public Health England is set to conduct a new public health review investigating the damage gambling-related harms can cause both socially and economically.
PHE are expecting the review to “identify gaps” in its knowledge and it plans to use the information gained to advise on future prevention and treatment efforts.
The health body was asked to “inform and support action on gambling-related harm as part of the follow up to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport-led review of gaming machines and social responsibility” in its remit letter for 2018 to 2019 .
Expected to be published in spring 2020, Marguerite Regan will manage the project; the five key objectives of the initiative are:
- To describe the prevalence of gambling and gambling-related harms in England by socio-demographic characteristics, geographical distribution and year.
- To identify the determinants of gambling and harmful gambling.
- To identify and describe the harms to individuals, families, communities, and wider societal harms associated with problematic and harmful gambling.
- To examine the social and economic burden of gambling-related harms.
- To gather stakeholder views on gambling-related harms in England.
As part of the first segment of the investigation, the National Institute of Health Research (NIHR) has commissioned a research unit at Sheffield University to review the effectiveness of national and international policies and interventions to reduce gambling-related harms.
Alongside this, PHE will carry out a broader evidence review on the “prevalence of gambling and associated health harms and their social and economic burden.”
