The controversy around the application of the new statutory levy of gambling harms has continued to escalate as Gamban confirmed it has been omitted from funding.
The charity, which was previously funded by GambleAware, criticised the decision of OHID to exclude it from the new funding process due to it being a limited company. Gamban is recognised as the most effective tool to block users access to gambling platforms and content across all devices
As the transition to the new levy system was confirmed last year, GambleAware announced it would cease operations, underlining just how significant the change is, with GambleAware previously being the commissioner of gambling harm treatment programmes.
GamBan stated that as a result of OHID’s decision, it will no longer be able to operate free of charge and will now be £4.99 a month or £29.99 a year. Previously, Gamban was free after a referral from TalkBanStop or through other selected referrals.
The group lamented the process of OHID, stating that it being a limited company “was not a reasonable basis to omit the best available gambling blocking software from the commissioning process” as it revealed that it has been forced into steps to ensure the maintenance of the quality of service its users need.
Having previously lobbied for the new levy system in the hope that it would increase funding for quality services, Matt Zarb-Cousin, co-founder of Gamban, described the criteria adopted by OHID as ‘bewildering’ and questioned whether services would improve as a result of the new system.
‘An inevitable outcome’
Criticism of the OHID process was echoed by Mark Conway, Consultancy for Gambling Harms, who described it as a ‘sad inevitable outcome’ of the commissioning process adopted around the split between VCSE and LA/NHS Levy funding.
He added that it was his understanding that even under RET, Gamban’s commercial status would have caused issues for commissioners, as he regretted the lack of adjustments that have been made in the process, given Gamban’s value to the sector.
At the heart of the issue was a lack of preparation or detailed understanding of the previous gambling harms sector during the transition to Levy funding, according to Conway, who responded on LinkedIn.
Conway described it as ‘a hurried transition with no real continuity plan – simply competitive bidding split between categories of service provision’.
The Gambling Lived Experience Network (GLEN) also criticised the ringfencing of the approach and the ‘mismanagement of the levy process’, describing it as ‘a glaring example of what happens when the existing system experts and stakeholders are excluded from planning strategy and decisions’.
The charity detailed that Gamban has been thrust into a similar situation to that which saw 10,000 plus users of the GambleAware App having also been cut-off overnight from support due to OHID’s decision not to continue supporting that tool.
GLEN added: “The mess we are in is down to poor planning… and unfortunate timing where the most important transformation to how GamblingHarms are addressed in this country was handed, unplanned, to State bodies who had neither asked for them, wanted them, nor had the subject knowledge or capacity to handle them.”
The lack of collaboration by OHID was also criticised by other corners of the industry. Revealing that Deal Me Out stepped away from the OHID process from the outset, the group’s founder, Jordan Lea, condemned the new process as he expressed fear over the accelerated shift towards a much more aggressive and militant public health message.
Speaking at the Illegal Gambling Prevention Summit earlier this month, he lamented that his early fears around the new process were coming to fruition, resulting in significant job losses and the closure of many key charities. This included the departure of GambleAware, which Lea felt was an initial priority for many campaigners as the process commenced, and an urgency to remove those with any history of industry funding.
Escalating concerns
Organisations including GambleAware have repeatedly warned that the new funding model risks harming the quality of care for users as treatment fragments across the UK – as evidenced by the availability for free of Gamban in Wales compared to England and Scotland.
GambleAware’s legacy report, released ahead of its closure today (31 March), stated: “As the system transitions, concerns about the potential loss of institutional knowledge and sectoral progress are rising. Alongside this, there is a concern that differences in local capacity could mean that the quality of services varies from place to place. Without deliberate action, these risks could erode progress made in prevention, early intervention, and equity of response.”
In recognition of the escalating problems surrounding the implementation of the new levy, the UK Government last week launched the Gambling Levy Transition Fund (GLTF) to provide an extra three months of funding for organisations that missed out on funding.
The Department for Culture, Media and Sport acknowledged the ‘generational change’ brought about by the funding transition and said the GLTF has been created to ‘ensure the continuity of gambling harm prevention and treatment services in England’.
