The Gambling Commission’s director of policy has shared an update on the ongoing evaluation of the Gambling Act Review carried out in collaboration with the DCMS following the release of the Government’s White Paper in April 2023
The Gambling Commission (GC), in collaboration with the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), has been actively working on assessing the impact of the Gambling Act Review, following the publication of the Government’s White Paper in April 2023.
This ambitious effort was born from a need to bring about significant policy changes, with the goal of addressing current challenges in gambling regulation.
As part of this initiative, explained the GC’s director of policy, Bryony Sheldon, the Commission has been making sure that these policy changes are rigorously monitored, evaluated, and adapted based on the outcomes and lessons learned.
In turn, the policy changes would perfectly align with their broader strategy to enhance their evaluative capacity from 2024 to 2027.
What the Comprehensive Evaluation Approach Incurs
In March 2024, the Gambling Commission, alongside DCMS, announced it would partner with the National Centre for Social Research (NatCen) to design a comprehensive evaluation approach for the Gambling Act Review and its associated policies.
DCMS has since published details on the planned evaluation, outlining key research questions, data collection methods, and governance structures.
This evaluation, further explained Sheldon, will be crucial in determining the effectiveness of the measures implemented and understanding their real-world impact.
The process will involve a wide range of stakeholders, including consumers, operators, and other groups with an interest in gambling policy.
“The experience of consumers, operators and other stakeholder groups will be a key part of the evaluation in the coming months, as we welcome participation in surveys, interviews and other planned research.”, said Sheldon.
Participation from these groups will be pivotal to ensuring the evaluation reflects diverse perspectives, and to this end, the Commission encourages ongoing involvement from consumers and operators.
Government Structures
To ensure the evaluation’s robustness and representativeness, the Commission has established several governance structures, such as a Lived Experience Panel and an Advisory Group, both independently managed by NatCen.
The Advisory Group will consist of experts in gambling policy, research, and regulation, who will provide guidance on monitoring and evaluating the review’s measures.
The Lived Experience Panel will provide insights into the progress of the evaluation from individuals’ personal experiences with gambling, whether positive or harmful.
The same panel will also help ensure that the evaluation takes into account the perspectives of those directly affected by gambling.
As the evaluation progresses, the Commission and NatCen will focus their efforts on prioritizing key aspects of the over 60 measures part of the Gambling Act Review.
“Inevitably, the evaluation will involve choices and some pragmatism in terms of where to prioritize efforts.”, added Sheldon. Fieldwork for the evaluation is expected to begin in the coming months, with further stakeholder outreach and updates anticipated for 2025.
