Agenda item

Report of Strategic Director Communities and Environment and Trevor David from Gamcare London, will attend provide an update to Committee.

The Committee undertook its fourth evidence gathering session on the review into the impact of gambling on the Borough. This session focused on recent research into the way that local authorities can protect vulnerable people from gambling related harm by improving the understanding of local area risk. It focussed on some work commissioned by Westminster and Manchester City Councils which was published in 2016.

The first aim of the study was to consider the types of people who may be at greater risk of harm from gambling and where they might be located. Based on review of existing evidence, it was conclude that the following groups are potentially more vulnerable to harm from gambling:-

·         Youths

·         People affected by substance abuse/misuse/excessive alcohol consumption

·         Poor mental health

·         People living in deprived areas

·         Certain ethnic groups

·         People with low IQs

·         People with personality/cognitive impairments

·         People seeking treatment for gambling problems

·         People who are unemployed

Having identified these groups, the next stage was to bring this information together to create local risk indices, showing areas with greater concentrations of people who are more likely to be vulnerable to harm.

For each characteristic of vulnerability identified, using Westminster and Manchester as case study areas, the availability of local level data was reviewed. For some characteristics, there were good data available (for example, unemployment rates but for others there were no data available (such as low IQ).

Therefore, the final characteristics of vulnerability included in the models were those where there was a strong theoretical and empirical basis for inclusion and good local level data available.

Information from all different characteristics was brought together and visually displayed. Data were grouped into two different indices based on whether they related to:

·         The characteristics of people who live in a local area (the resident profile) and/or

·         The location of local services which are likely to attract potentially vulnerable people to a specific place.

Data from the two indices were then combined to produce an overall gambling risk index for each area. These results were displayed visually on maps for Westminster and Manchester to highlight the locations which had relatively higher risk profiles.

In Westminster, four broad areas of greater risk were identified. The heightened risk in each area is driven by a range of different factors. For example, in Pimlico risk is higher because a greater number of homelessness shelters and substance treatment providers in this area. In the North West area, risk is driven by rates of unemployment, ethnic make-up and large numbers of resident young people.

In Manchester, many different areas of risk were identified which include areas around the city centre and the south of the city; risk in the city centre is driven primarily by the concentration of pay-day loans shops, education establishments, younger residents and support centres for problem gamblers. Relatively high levels of unemployment as well as ethnic mix are major driving factors in the other locations.

The study made the following recommendations:

The Gambling Commission’s introduction of Local Area Risk profiles represents a new opportunity for local authorities and industry alike to think more deeply about the protection of vulnerable people from gambling-related harm. This means extending understanding of local area risk beyond mapping deprivation and considering a more nuanced range of factors.

Local authorities interested in pursuing this approach should start to consider the different types of data they have available and how these can be used in local area profiles.

Local authorities should also start to consider what data and/or evidence is missing and how they could fill these gaps, working with different departments within the authority to capture relevant information.

The models developed are based on the best information currently available. An acknowledged limitation of gambling research is the paucity of evidence available. The study recommends that the models are periodically reviewed and update to take into account growing knowledge, better data and changes in local areas.

The Committee also received a presentation from Trevor David from Gamcare London who outlined the work his organisation is doing with supporting addicts.