We were pleased to welcome Sonia Kumar MP, the Labour MP for Dudley since 2024, to our residential treatment centre in her constituency on Friday 10th January 2025.
This was Sonia’s first visit to one of our treatment centres and was an opportunity for Sonia to discover more about our treatment programmes and the support we offer to people across the UK.
Showcasing our services
Following a tour of the centre, Sonia met with current service users and alumni from our men’s residential treatment programme. They shared their stories of gambling-related harms and the impact of coming into treatment at Gordon Moody had on their lives.
Alumni Paul stated during the visit:
“Coming into residential treatment meant I could concentrate on my recovery. My recovery workers didn’t give up on me.
“Gordon Moody gave me the foundations and knowing I had a strong base to lean on, I have been able to rebuild my life.
“Since leaving treatment, I have studied for A Levels and start a degree course soon. I thought my life was over before coming into treatment.”
Childhood gambling
Most of the alumni and current service users stated that they had started gambling before the age of 16 and Sonia was blown away and shocked by the young ages people are getting into gambling.
Current service user Dan (not his real name), outlined his early start in gambling:
“I started gambling when I was just 16 and in my first year of studying for my A Levels. My gambling continued through me going to university and I was eventually kicked off my degree course due to my gambling.
“I didn’t reach out for help for my gambling-related harm until I was 28. I won’t get those 12 years back but I am now determined that I want to work in the gambling-related harm space when I am further along my recovery pathway.
“I would like to return to my old university to talk to current students and raise awareness. Whether I reach one person or a whole host, it will be worth it.”
Mental health and gambling
Recent Gordon Moody research showed that 72% of women and 84% of men scored in the range for minor, moderate, or severe depression before coming into treatment. Alumni Dominic mentioned his mental health struggles during the session with Sonia. He commented:
“If you had told me 18 months ago that I would be 16 months gamble-free – I wouldn’t have believed you.
“I never saw myself getting out of something that was so ingrained in my brain that my mental health was non-existent. I took a fatal dose of morphine before coming into Gordon Moody.
“My head was a mess, it was going 24/7. Whilst in active addiction, you are either not sleeping, trying to find money to gamble, or gambling. Your sole purpose in life is to gamble.
“Following my treatment, I went back into full-time education for the first time in 30 years and passed my basic maths and English exams. I have just passed my Level Two in Counselling and move onto Level Three next week with the aim to become a counsellor solely working on gambling-related harm.
“It’s a cliche but Gordon Moody saved my life, and gave me my life back.”
Preparing to return home
Current service user Gary (not his real name) was moving into his last week of residential treatment when he spoke with Sonia. After gambling for nearly half his life, he spoke about how coming into treatment helped him learn more about himself beyond the gambling-related harm:
“I thought I was coming into treatment to just treat my gambling-related harm but the treatment goes a lot further into the roots of why you started gambling and that has been massive for me.
“I also wanted to end my life at one point due to the gambling. I carried the stigma with me, no-one else knew for years.
“Gordon Moody have supported me from day one. Daily therapy sessions, reflection sessions, meditation, your phone taken away from you. It was phone therapy as well!
“My relationships have improved with people back home so much. It is really important that residential treatment continues and carries on for families across the country.
“Hearing other people’s stories in therapy that are so similar to yours helps. I had never found group therapy very good in the past but after coming to Gordon Moody, it was the best thing I could have done. Seeing so many other people overcome by this horrible thing weighing them down was an eye opener for me.”
Service user data
In 2023-2024, we had 971 applications for treatment, an average of 19 per week. Of those applications, 518 people went through assessments and 408 people were accepted onto our treatment programmes. 198 people attended either residential or retreat & counselling programmes.
People attending our treatment programmes had an average PGSI score of between 19 and 22. A score greater than eight on the PGSI scale denotes gambling harm. On leaving treatment, average scores were between three and seven points, suggesting they were no longer actively experiencing harm.
Between two and 19% of the population are classed as affected others. Our service users, whose loved ones attended our affected others programme, were less likely to drop out of treatment. Service users with loved ones attending our affected others programme, were less anxious and/or distressed on leaving residential treatment. This potentially shows that their loved ones were prepared for them to return, had coping mechanisms in place, and had someone to turn to for help and advice.
Our unique programmes
Clinical Director, Rosalind Baker-Frampton, highlighted the benefit of our residential programmes during the session. She commented:
“The guys have mentioned this but you need that time to come away and, because our programmes are residential, we give people that time and space away from their lives to reclaim and rebuild their lives free from gambling-related harms.
“I think you have heard from people that needed that time being taken out of their existing lives to build their foundations and assess their problems before they can move on with their recovery.”
Thank you
Thank you for visiting us, Sonia. We know you have gone away with a lot of new information about not only Gordon Moody, but gambling-related harm, treatment options, and the need for collaboration across the sector to ensure that we are able to tackle gambling-related harms together.
GORDON MOODY ARE THE UK’S LEADING CHARITY DEDICATED TO PROVIDING SUPPORT AND TREATMENT FOR GAMBLING-RELATED HARMS. WE HELP PEOPLE RECLAIM AND REBUILD THEIR LIVES THROUGH RECOVERY IN A SAFE, SUPPORTED ENVIRONMENT.