Low visibility, low priority: Gambling and probation work in England and Wales
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Abstract: This research aimed to develop the very limited evidence base on how gambling harms (related to crime or otherwise) manifest among people on probation (PoP), how probation services currently respond to those harms, and how their practices could be improved. Over 80 interviews and focus groups were conducted with PoP, their families, HMPPS and probation staff, and other stakeholders (most notably from commissioned rehabilitation services). The findings from thematic analysis include PoP receiving a lack of support for gambling harms from probation in court, custodial, and community settings, with gambling behaviours and harms rarely discussed. Data on gambling harms is not systematically collected and so the scale of those harms among PoP remains unknown. Gambling harms and their relationship to crime are generally poorly understood by probation practitioners, but with pockets of expertise and good practice in evidence. There is inconsistency in practice between regions, between individual members of staff and between the experiences of PoP. In general gambling harms are given low priority by a probation service that is under considerable strain, with PoP experiencing those harms being seen as atypical (compliant and capable) among probation's case load. The consequences for PoP and their families of probation's failure to address gambling harms include gambling relapse, poor mental health, including suicidal ideation, relationship breakdown and reoffending.
Speakers:
Dr Julie Trebilcock is a Senior Lecturer in Criminology and Programme Leader in the Division of Criminology and Criminal Justice at Brunel University. Her research spans criminology, law and forensic mental health and she has extensive experience of conducting research with people in prison and those detained in secure mental health facilities. Julie has previously worked at the National Problem Gambling Clinic in London and has recently completed two pieces of research about women and ethnic minority communities for the Commission on Crime and Gambling Related Harms and the Howard League for Penal Reform. This research was supported by Betknowmore UK.
Dr Liz Riley is Head of Research and Evaluation at Betknowmore UK, a charity that supports people experiencing gambling harms. For Betknowmore UK, Liz has led projects exploring women's support needs and the effectiveness of peer support groups. She has been part of NIHR-funded research led by Kings College on a gambling screening question for adult social services, three Howard League-funded projects on crime and gambling harms, and Ipsos and ClearView research on gambling harms in minority communities. She is also co-investigator on a Durham University project funded by the Gambling Commission that is examining gambling-related domestic abuse.