Betknowmore UK

Over the years in Wave we’ve worked hard to break down the stigma of talking about a range of things including mental health, physical health topics, debt etc. In the last 10 days we’ve built on that and we’ve brought awareness to our people on addictions and gambling in particular. I first saw Lisa and Matt Smith share their stories of their gambling experiences at a THIS CAN HAPPEN conference and knew we needed to raise this subject in Wave. Lisa shared her experience with our employees and then a week later we brought in a specialist counsellor from Talk Works - B Corp to run an awareness session for our workforce on addiction in general. The feedback from both of these has been heartwarming. For all employers out there, I can’t recommend this enough. The statistics are staggering, with almost 1 in 10 people affected by or impacted by gambling and that’s just one type of addiction. By the law of averages that means most companies have people who are struggling with, or recovering from addictions. Please help these people feel they have your suppport and not worry that they might lose their jobs. It all begins with awareness and education. Thank you Worksafe Programme, Betknowmore UK, Talk Works - B Corp and THIS CAN HAPPEN for helping us to help others. Wave, Stevan Jankovic, Helen Wilkinson, Dr Jennifer Cottam, Carly Richardson, Lisa Davis.

Last week, Betknowmore UK's Lisa Walker was invited to share her story of #gamblingharms in an online #livedexperience session with over 130 people from Wave. Jane Austin had previously met Lisa and Matt Smith at a THIS CAN HAPPEN event, and was so inspired by their stories that, along with Carly Richardson, she became determined to bring awareness of gambling harms to their people. The session was incredibly powerful, with the participants asking some truly insightful questions and sharing some lovely feedback. As ever, Lisa was an inspiration 🥰 Huge thanks to Jane and Carly for your passion and your support in making this session possible. We look forward to continuing our collaboration so that, between us, we can help prevent and address gambling harms in the workplace.

Hello network - 10 days until this role closes and I'm keen to make sure we haven't missed anyone out there that might be interested. It's the chance to make meaningful change within the armed forces community who experience gambling harm and it's the chance to work with a cracking team 😊 (including me obviously!). Please do share if you think you know someone who might be interested - happy to chat with anyone who'd like more details. Betknowmore UK https://lnkd.in/eT5qeZc2

Remember, remember the 5th November. It is my 10 year recovery anniversary today ✅ I am finding this particular milestone hard to put into words. Whilst my mental wellbeing was at its lowest back in 2014 I had used alcohol and gambling for several years previous as a crutch and a coping mechanism to deal with the stresses of life. I became dependant, hurt others, lost my job, my home, family members and friends and through my own actions which took me to a point of having to start over. I woke up one morning thinking I don't want to live like this anymore. Thankfully there were people who loved me, when I couldn't love myself, many of them down here in Bournemouth (Jeff and Patrick ❤️ still two of my closest friends today) where the journey started for me thanks to Paul Spanjar and the wonderful team at the Providence Projects. And so it began, coming out of loneliness, depression and anxiety to 10 years later celebrating this occasion still here in Bournemouth - my home. I now wake up with peace of mind, knowing my relationships with others are better than they have ever been and the wonderful feeling of having a purpose in life again, through both voluntary commitments and my work. On that note another announcement, I'm delighted to be taking up the post as Director of External Affairs at Betknowmore UK. Thank you to all of my colleagues for their support, and in particular Matt Blanks and Frankie Graham for getting me through the door and allowing me to grow professionally as I enter into my 5th year with the organisation. I'm full of gratitude to all of my friends and colleagues around the world who have played a part in my journey. There are many of you who have now embraced and amplified the voice of lived experience in order to better prevent harm and support those who are vulnerable. To those of you who are on the same path as me, or who are struggling, there is another way, please keep going one day at a time. Getting sober and being in recovery has single handedly been the best decision of my life. Thank You. Matt

Have you considered your workplace gambling culture? Does your company have sufficient knowledge, policies and systems in place if an employee came forward with a gambling harms issue? How about implementing a strategic approach that focuses as much on prevention as cure? The Worksafe programme can help with all of the above, please contact us to start with an informal chat about your company needs #gamblingharms #workplace #workplacegambling #publichealth worksafe@betknowmoreuk.org

Reflections from New Horizons 2024. As I said this week in Vancouver 'Lived Experience shouldn't just be a token gesture'. I am fortunate that I have a platform through my work at Betknowmore UK that gives me a voice to share my lived experience, but not everybody has this same opportunity in their recovery journey to come full circle and feel that they have a voice too. The Gambling Recovery Information Network is going to tackle this, and make sure that the broad church of experts by experience are better heard around the globe. Not just sharing our stories, but making a difference through peer support, focus groups and alike to encourage tangible outcomes from what we share. Our voices should not just be a one and done, but be an embedded element in workplace cultures across the sector so we can better prevent harm from gambling and support those who are vulnerable. Whilst prevention is important, there are those who will slip through the net and we must be there to support them and empower them to live a life they want to. I have felt encouraged over the last two weeks through conversations that I have had, that there is momentum building and a range of colleagues from government through to regulators and around the sector are supporting the movement to amplify our voice. The team at BCLC put on a great program over the last few days and we thank you for highlighting our project - what a great turnout we had. I have been quite overwhelmed by all of the kind words and feedback from our session and look forward to following up with many of you in the coming weeks and months. Lastly, thank you to my friends and colleagues from the Massachusetts Council on Gaming and Health, Janine Ruggiero, Marlene Warner, Shekinah Hoffman for without you these trips would not be quite as enjoyable.

Had an excellent day on Wednesday after inviting Betknowmore UK to our Omexom UK Institute to talk about Gambling Harm. Was incredible to find out how much this addiction is affecting so many people's lives across the UK & RoI. Much work to be done but our Wellbeing Champions and HR team are now on that journey to support employees.

“Lived experience is not a token term.” -Matt Smith, our colleague from Betknowmore UK, shares his powerful story of recovery from gambling-related harm with Marlene Warner. Together, they highlight how their passion for peer support can revolutionize the industry by leveraging peers as an untapped resource for progress and insight. GRIN, a collaboration between our two organizations, is poised to be a way forward, as the Gambling Recovery Information Network. Ask us about our training, access, and upcoming partnerships. #newhorizonsbclc #GRIN

New Horizons 2024 in Vancouver. A privilege to represent the Betknowmore UK team here in Canada this week alongside my colleague Marlene Warner from the Massachusetts Council on Gaming and Health where we shall be talking about the Gambling Recovery Information Network. I will share my own lived experience of gambling and how having a network of individuals can work with organisations across the sector to prevent and support further impact of harm. #NewHorizons2024

Hello network - I'd be grateful of a share please. This is a new role to join the Armed Forces Programme here at Betknowmore UK. It's the opportunity to scope out our Peer Aid offering for the Armed Forces Community so it's a one of a kind type of a role. The upside ... fab team (including me 😊 ), downside ... can't think of one at the moment! If you have a military background and lived experience of gambling harm then this role will really play to your strengths. Let me know if you'd like a chat? Julie Martin Colin Bland Oliver Christie David Quinti Olivia Thorp Michelle Hill Matt Blanks https://lnkd.in/eT5qeZc2