Lived experience community
Those with lived experience of gambling harms are at the centre of all we do at GambleAware. They are the beneficiaries, key stakeholders, and participants in our work.
"It’s essential that the opinions of those with experience of gambling harms guide our work, to ensure we always have their needs in mind. We are extremely grateful for the work the Lived Experience Council has already done."
Zoë Osmond, CEO
We know that people are experts on their lived experiences, which is why their engagement and involvement is key to shaping our work and strategy.
Our strategy commits to investing in the development of lived experience networks to help make sure networks are diverse and democratic. This allows networks to speak with a representative voice and to be sustainable and accountable to their membership.
We are also committed to using the expertise within the network to:
We are always looking for new ways to partner with the lived experience community. The ways in which we collaborate with the community currently include:
The GambleAware Lived Experience Council (LEC) is made up of 12 members with lived experience of gambling harms. This includes people who have been affected by their own and someone else’s gambling.
The LEC provides our Board with independent expert advice to make sure that communities of people with lived experience of gambling harms can provide expert advice on our activities, programmes and strategic development. They also inform all our programmes of work, including our national public health Stigma campaign, our digital tools and the research we commission.
Lived experience council video (1 min 24 secs)
Lived experience council video (1 min 24 secs)
Individuals with lived experience of gambling harms can register to take part in short-term opportunities to contribute to our wider work. This includes those who are affected by other people’s gambling.
The Affected Lived Experience Research, Treatment and Support Group (ALERTS) is an independent lived experience group. It’s made up of:
individuals who have experienced gambling harms
a range of treatment providers within the National Gambling Support Network
ALERTS use their experience to create and facilitate open and honest dialogue with treatment providers to understand current treatment pathways and to establish what works well.
The Gambling Lived Experience Network (GLEN) is an independent voice which raises awareness and support to people with gambling related harms. It’s the largest network representing the community and achieved charitable status and registration with the Charity Commission, and established governance processes.
Its representatives are visible in the sector, and the network reflects very strongly our commitment to building the capacity and voice of the lived experience community.
In April 2023 we launched a major new public health campaign aiming to tackle stigma. The launch of this campaign introduced a new approach to involvement with the lived experience community.
For this first time, the campaign was created with people who have lived experience of gambling harms and aimed to put their stories at the heart of the campaign. Their stories were brought to life using animations which were based on the story, tone and character.
Other involvement with the lived experience community includes focus groups. With these groups we aim to share strategic narratives and creative concepts and hear from them whether the ideas resonate with their own experiences.
There are usually multiple focus groups within the development of a campaign so that people are brought along the journey. We also look to include lived experience voices at the launch of a campaign with opportunities to take part in media interviews and provide quotes for press releases.
“I just wanted to share my experience with others who had been affected by gambling harm, and work with the experts to shape the future of how we help people with gambling harm.” Catherine, lived experience community
If you want to contact us about our open opportunities, email involvement@gambleaware.org.
Unfortunately, this service is for UK residents only. You can find out more about international support here.