Martin Lewis Creates Gambling Harms Action Lab
The Money and Mental Health Policy Institute, founded by Martin Lewis, has set up a new body to combat gambling harms. It will be called the Gambling Harms Action Lab.
Helping Those in Need
A new programme to address gambling related harm in the UK has been launched by a body that was founded by the television money expert Martin Lewis.
The Gambling Harms Action Lab will run for a period of three years after being set up by Lewis’ charity, the Money and Mental Health Policy Institute.
It will include a group of five to seven financial services firms, with the first of them – Nationwide – having already signed up.
Research has consistently shown that the majority of adults in the UK gamble to some degree, although that includes activities such as playing bingo and buying lottery tickets.
Gambling Commission data has also found that as many as 1.3 million adults in Great Britain suffer from problem gambling.
The Gambling Harms Action Lab is funded by a regulatory settlement from the Gambling Commission, with the programme set to support new interventions.
Catastrophic Harms
Chief executive of the Money and Mental Health Policy Institute, Helen Undy, said in a statement gambling problems can “cause catastrophic harms” for those affected.
“Financial services are in a unique position to help, and it’s been great to see the progress made in recent years — particularly with the introductions of gambling blocking tools, which almost every current account provider now offers,” she said in a statement.
However, Undy noted there is still more work to be done to combat gambling addiction.
“We want to work with banks and other financial services to share ideas, overcome the challenges that might exist to improve support for customers, and to spread best practice across the sector. The Gambling Harms Action Lab is an important opportunity for firms to help drive that progress, no matter how advanced they are or otherwise in this work,” she added.
More Collaboration Needed
Nationwide being the first to sign up to join the Gambling Harms Action Lab was welcomed by the Money and Mental Health Policy Institute chief executive.
Undy said: “We’re delighted that Nationwide have come on board with the programme, and we’re urging more firms to get involved so that we can continue the momentum in tackling gambling harms that we’ve seen in recent years.”
Kathryn Townsend, Nationwide’s head of customer vulnerability and accessibility, highlighted “greater collaboration” as the key to reducing gambling harms in the UK.
“We are delighted to be the first financial services organisation to sign up to it and look forward to working alongside them and the wider industry to make a positive difference to people’s finances, relationships and mental health,” she said in a statement.
