News
13th OCTOBER 2008 - FREE LOCAL HELP FOR ANYONE AFFECTED BY PROBLEM GAMBLING IN SCARBOROUGH & WHITBY
13 October 2008
For anyone affected by problem gambling, professional help will be available in Scarborough and Whitby from 13th October. GamCare, a registered charity and the leading national provider of advice, support and treatment for problem gambling, will deliver free face to face counselling in premises in these parts of Yorkshire through our Partner NECA.
Gambling is exciting and fun for the majority of people, but for some of us, it can become a problem. Rather than an enjoyable way to spend spare time and cash, gambling can become a preoccupation. Debt, obtaining money dishonestly and hiding the extent of gambling might follow. All too easily, the situation can spiral out of control and repercussions on the entire family can be devastating. When it comes to a crisis point, the gambler, and the family, may not know where to turn. Listeners can contact GamCare’s advisers on our HelpLine 0845 6000 133 or NetLine www.gamcare.org.uk for confidential one-to-one advice, information, support and how to arrange counselling locally.
Anyone hesitant about talking to an adviser direct can go on the online self-help Forum or the Chat Rooms for understanding, sharing experiences and support. NECA’s face to face counsellors are professionally qualified and have been trained by GamCare in problem gambling. Contacts:For information about the signs of problem gambling and how GamCare can help locally, contact:Roger Sykes, Area Manager, NECA, 0191 414 6446, roger.sykes@neca.org.uk
Eileen Kinghan, Marketing Director, GamCare 020 7801 7003, eileen@gamcare.org.uk
NOTES GamCare is the leading national authority on the provision of counselling, advice and practical help for anyone experiencing or affected by problem gambling. GamCare’s confidential one-to-one national support services, available 8am to midnight, are the telephone HelpLine (365 days of the year) and NetLine (Monday to Friday). According to the British Gambling Prevalence Survey 2007, it is estimated that 0.6% of the UK population (around 300,000 people) are problem gamblers. Considering that each may have a partner, parents and dependents, those affected by problem gambling may number over one million. The British Gambling Prevalence Survey 2007, commissioned by the Gambling Commission and prepared and published by the National Centre for Social Research, is available online at http://www.gamblingcommission.gov.uk/UploadDocs/publications/Document/Prevalence%20Survey%20final.pdf