Gambling Harm Treatment and Support in Scotland: Current provisions and future directions

Annex 1: Online questionnaire

The online survey of gambling harm treatment and support providers will be conducted using Qualtrics and will rely primarily on closed-type questions. Further qualitative information will be obtained through qualitative interviews with selected respondents.

In this survey, we will ask you questions about gambling support services your organisation provides. It will take no more than 15 minutes to complete.

The survey has been commissioned by the Scottish Government and conducted by ScotCen in partnership with the Glasgow Gambling Research group at the University of Glasgow. The survey is to support the Scottish Government in its ‘Gambling Services Mapping’ activity as part of the effective distribution of the Gambling Levy funds.

Before you decide whether to answer the questions, please read the information sheet and privacy attached to the invitation email.

By completing and submitting this survey, you are consenting to be part of this research.

Thank you for your help.

These first few questions are about your organisation and the programme and project work on gambling that the organisation has been doing in Scotland and/or for Scottish residents.

Q1: Please, record the name of your organisation

WRITE IN

Q2: Please, select the answer that best describes your organisation:

TICK ONE ONLY

1. NHS health & social care service

2. Local Government health & social care service

3. Non-governmental organisation (incl. charitable and third sector organisations) – gambling specialist (including third sector treatment providers)

4. Non-governmental organisation (incl. charitable and third sector organisations) – non-gambling specialist

5. Peer support group/network

6. Other [write in]

Q3: If your organisation has a non-gambling specialism, record the main focus of your organisation:

TICK ONE ONLY

1. Mental health

2. Addictions

3. Homelessness

4. Debt and financial advice

5. Housing support

6. Women’s rights/gender-based violence/gender equality

7. Other [write in]

Q4 (filter question): Does your organisation have an office in Scotland that runs a gambling-specific programme(s)/project(s)?

TICK ONE ONLY

1. Yes

2. No

If Q4=Yes, go to Q4A

Q4A: Do you offer gambling-related services in multiple locations across Scotland?

TICK ONE ONLY

1. No

2. Yes [WRITE IN THE LOCATIONS OF YOUR PHYSICAL OFFICES RUNNING GAMBLING-RELATED PROGRAMMES/PROJECTS IN SCOTLAND; INCLUDING FULL POSTCODE]

If Q4=No, go to Q5.

Q5 (filter question): If your organisation does not have an office in Scotland, but runs a UK-wide gambling-specific programme(s)/project(s), please estimate what percentage of the programme/project beneficiaries reside in Scotland?

TICK ALL THAT APPLY

1. None

2. 0-1%

3. 2-5%

4. 6-10%

5. 11-15%

6. >15%

If Q5=1 or 2 or 3 or 4, END SURVEY.

If Q5=5 or 6, go to Q6.

Q6 (filter question): When was the first gambling-specific programme/project run by your organisation established?

TICK ALL THAT APPLY

1. > 2 years ago

2. 1-2 years ago

3. 3-12 months ago

4. < 3 months ago

5. We’re just about to launch a gambling-specific programme/project for the first time

IF Q6=4 or 5,END SURVEY.

IF Q6=1 or 3 or 3, go to Q7.

The next block of questions concerns gambling-specific services that your organisation provides.

Q7 Who do you provide gambling-specific support to?

TICK ALL THAT APPLY

1. People directly affected by harm only (e.g. those participating in gambling)

2. People affected by someone else’s gambling (e.g. family members of a gambler)

3. Both

Q8 What age group does your service cover?

TICK ALL THAT APPLY

1. Age under 15 years

2. 16-17 year olds

3. 18+ year olds

Q9 (filter question) What kind of treatment and support for people affected by gambling harms does your service provide?

TICK ALL THAT APPLY

1. Brief advice. This typically involves a brief conversation that could be delivered by non-specialists. It also includes referral to self-help groups, such as online forums.

2. Extended brief interventions. This typically involves 2 or 3 sessions of motivational interviewing delivered by gambling-specialist practitioners.

3. Psychosocial interventions. This typically involves around 6 sessions of psychosocial treatment delivered one-to-one or in a group format by gambling treatment practitioners that vary in their techniques and structure.

4. Psychologist-led CBT. This typically involves 8 to 14 sessions of CBT for gambling disorder, delivered by clinical psychologists or CBT-accredited psychotherapists. It may also include psychological therapy for co-existing mental health conditions.

5. Intensive residential treatment. This typically involves a 12-week residential treatment programme that would include one-to-one therapy and group sessions.

6. Peer support.

7. Other [write in]

Q10 Where are typical referral pathways for people experiencing gambling-related harm into your service?

TICK ALL THAT APPLY

1. Self-referral (e.g. self-initiated contact, website, walk-in, word of mouth)

2. Gambling-specific services & peer support (e.g. National Gambling Helpline, gambling charities, GA)

3. Health services (e.g. GP, mental health services, NHS addiction services, A&E)

4. Local authority & statutory services (e.g. social work, welfare services, criminal justice)

5. Housing & homelessness services

6. Other third-sector or community organisations (e.g. mental health, debt advice, community or faith groups)

7. Employment-related routes (e.g. employer, HR, occupational health)

8. Internal or partner organisations

9. Education & advice services (e.g. schools, universities, Citizens Advice)

10. Other [write in]

Q11 Please indicate where your organisation typically signposts or supports referrals to for people experiencing gambling-related harms, if at all?

TICK ALL THAT APPLY

1. Do not typically signpost/refer people further

2. Self-exclusion & consumer protection tools (e.g. GAMSTOP, financial and banking blocking tools, etc.)

3. Gambling-specific treatment & recovery services (e.g. outpatient or remote specialist gambling treatment service (NHS and third sector); residential treatment services; gambling harm reduction programmes; aftercare/recovery services)

4. Gambling harm treatment & recovery services targeted at specific groups (women; minoritised ethnic groups; homeless people; youth; etc.)

5. Peer-led recovery (e.g. Gamblers Anonymous; other recovery communities (online or in-person))

6. Mental health support (e.g. GPs/primary care; NHS MH services; community MH teams; counselling and psychological therapy services; MH crisis services, e.g. Breathing Space, Samaritans)

7. Addiction services

8. Financial and material support services (e.g. debt advice; benefits advice; food banks; home energy advice)

9. Housing assistance

10. Specialist safeguarding and vulnerability support (e.g. gender-based violence, economic abuse, family or relationships, services for people with complex and multiple needs).

11. Criminal justice services.

12. Other [write in]

Q12 How is your service currently funded? Please tell us about all funding sources for the gambling work you undertake.

TICK ALL THAT APPLY

1. Central government

2. Local Government

3. NHS

4. GambleAware

5. Regulatory settlements

6. National lottery

7. Direct donations from gambling industry

8. Direct donations from other sources [write in the source]

9. Other [write in]

Q13 Does your service provide treatment or support for issues other than gambling (i.e., alcohol and drugs, mental health)? If yes, please tell us more about this.

TICK ALL THAT APPLY

1. No

2. Yes, alcohol and drugs

3. Yes, mental health/mental health crisis support

4. Yes, homelessness

5. Yes, debt and financial support

6. Yes, criminal justice

7. Yes, veteran support

8. Yes, other [write in]

Q14 Does your service provide other types of gambling-related work (e.g., training, education)?

TICK ALL THAT APPLY

1. No

2. Yes, School-based programmes

3. Yes, Workplace programmes

4. Yes, befriending programmes for children and youth

5. Yes, Lived experience forums

6. Yes, Training for other organisations

7. Yes, Knowledge brokering

8. Yes, Research

9. Yes, Advocacy

10. Other [write in]

In this section, we will ask you a series of questions about each type of gambling-related services you indicated your organisation provides.

For all answers selected in Q9, present respondents with a matrix including Q16-18:

Q15 (filter question) How is [Q9 answer] provided in your service?

TICK ALL THAT APPLY

1. In person

2. Telephone

3. Online

4. Via email

5. By post (e.g. information leaflets)

Q16 Please, estimate the number of users of [Q9 answer] your organisation had in October 2025.

WRITE IN A NUMERICAL VALUE

Q17 Please, indicate the proportion of men, women, and non-binary individuals accessing [Q9 answer] in October 2025.

1. Women - indicate %

2. Men – indicate %

3. Non-binary - indicate %

If Q9=3 thru 5, go to Q18

If Q9=1, 2 or 6, go to Q19.

Q18 Does your service provide any aftercare following support from your service?

TICK ALL THAT APPLY

1. Yes, there is an agreed schedule for a follow-up at 3, 6, and 9 months

2. Yes, there is an agreed schedule for a follow-up, but with a different pattern [WRITE IN]

3. No

Q19 Is lived experience incorporated into the development and delivery of your service?

TICK ALL THAT APPLY

1. Yes, we have peer workers or peer mentors with lived experience

2. Yes, people with lived experience support the process of staff recruitment

3. Yes, people with lived experience are consulted on service development/improvement

4. Yes, people with lived experience are involved in governance or strategic leadership (e.g. board membership, advisory boards, senior decision-making roles)

5. No

Q20 Do you operate any specialist service provision for certain populations?

TICK ALL THAT APPLY

1. Yes, women

2. Yes, young people aged 18-34

3. Yes, ethnic minority groups

4. Yes, homeless people

5. Yes, other [write in]

6. No

The next few questions are about your workforce, i.e. the paid staff who work within your service and who deliver work around gambling.

Q21A How many workers do you have who work directly with clients?

WRITE IN NUMERICAL VALUE

Q21B How many of these workers work full-time, and how many part-time?

1. Full-time (more than 30 hrs per week) [WRITE IN NUMERICAL VALUE]

2. Part-time (less than 30 hrs per week) [WRITE IN NUMERICAL VALUE]

Q22 Do you have any volunteers supporting your gambling support service? If yes, how many?

1. Yes [write in numerical value]

2. No

Q23 What are the occupation(s) of workers providing gambling treatment and support in your service?

TICK ALL THAT APPLY

1. HCPC-registered practitioner psychologists

2. Psychiatrists

3. BACP/UKCP/COSCA accredited psychotherapists or counsellors

4. Health and social care practitioners

5. Peer support workers

6. Non-peer support workers

7. Other [write in]

Q24 What training do your workers receive or have access to in order to perform their gambling support roles?

TICK ALL THAT APPLY

1. Gambling-specific knowledge and competencies (e.g., Bet You Can Help / Beacon, RCA gambling training, Fast Forward gambling awareness, etc.)

2. Mental health, suicide prevention and crisis response (e.g. Scottish Mental Health First Aid, ASSIST, etc.)

3. Trauma-informed and psychologically informed practice (e.g. Trauma-informed practice training, etc.)

4. Safeguarding, ethics and professional standards (e.g. Safeguarding adults/children, GDPR and data protection, etc.)

5. Equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) (e.g. EDI training, gender-responsive practice, domestic abuse / GBV awareness training)

6. Training on financial wellbeing, debt, and economic impacts of gambling (e.g. Financial Capability training – Money Advice Scotland, debt awareness training, economic abuse training)

7. Referral pathways training and system navigation (e.g. referral pathway guides, gambling harm toolkits, multi-agency working training)

8. Ongoing learning and CPD (e.g. CPD sessions, refresher workshops, supervision linked to gambling work)

9. Specific medical training (e.g. from National Health Service, Primary Care Health Training etc)

10. Other [write in]

11. None of the above

Q25 What safeguarding policies are used in your organisation?

TICK ALL THAT APPLY

1. Safeguarding (adults and/or children) (e.g. Adult Support and Protection; GIRFEC)

2. Mental health and capacity (e.g. Mental Health (Care and Treatment) (Scotland) Act; crisis procedures)

3. Trauma-informed and harm-reduction practice (e.g. trauma-informed practice; naloxone; harm reduction)

4. Risk management and safety (e.g. risk assessment; health & safety; first aid)

5. Equality, human rights and ethical practice (e.g. EDI; Human Rights Act)

6. Confidentiality and data protection (e.g. GDPR; information sharing)

7. Workforce safeguarding and regulation (e.g. PVG; SSSC; safer recruitment; employee safeguarding)

8. Domestic abuse and exploitation (e.g. Ask and Act; economic abuse; GBV)

9. Other safeguarding policies [WRITE IN]

10. None / not applicable

In this final section, we will ask you about the information and data that you collect about the people whom you support, specifically around gambling. Please only report data for service provision in Scotland.

Q26: What kinds of data about service users, if any, is routinely collected?

TICK ALL THAT APPLY

1. None – we do not collect any data about service users

2. age,

3. sex,

4. response to screening questions;

5. referrals made;

6. PGSI scores;

7. gambling behaviours/harms;

8. alcohol use;

9. substance use;

10. mental health;

11. depression;

12. CORE-10 responses

13. Distance travelled to service

14. Other [write in]

Q27: Does your service report data and outcomes to the GambleAware Data Reporting Framework (DRF)?

1. Yes

2. No

3. Don’t know

If Q15=1, go to Q28A

If Q15 not equal 1, END

Q28A: How many facilities do you have where service users visit you in person?

WRITE IN NUMBER

Q28B: Please give the full postcode and address for all facilities where service users visit you in person

Q28C:Thinking about your facilities where service users visit you in person, as a best estimate, what proportion of users live within:

(If this varies for different facilities, please report what you think is most typical)

1. 1 mile radius – indicate %;

2. 5 mile radius - indicate %;

3. 10 mile radius - indicate %;

4. more than 10 miles radius of service - indicate %.

5. Don’t know

Q28D:To your knowledge, what is the furthest distance (in Miles) travelled by your user to access services?

WRITE IN NUMERICAL VALUE

Thank you for completing the survey.

We may contact you to clarify some of your responses. Please let us know your name and provide an email address for follow-up. Some organisations will also be invited to a short follow-up interview. Please indicate below if you would be happy to be contacted about an interview.

Q29A: Please enter your name (first name and surname)

Q29B: Please enter your email address for follow-up

Q30: Would you be willing to take part in a follow-up interview about your organisation’s gambling support services?

1. Yes

2. No.

END