Chairperson’s Report 2006

As the GIS celebrates its 6th year of operations I am pleased to submit an annual report for the period July 2005– June 2006 at our September AGM.

This has been a year of focussing upon our core aims of increasing awareness about problem gambling and supporting the work of others working in this field. We continue to do this through the dissemination of information across the State through our quarterly newsletter, community education resources and our self-help website. In the Illawarra region our newsletter is received by the majority of welfare/ community agencies and gambling venues, whilst at a State level this is received by all PG counselling services and other stakeholders. The ongoing updating and development of our website is a priority for the service and we are grateful for the support of our web manager Alan Robinson for his ingenuity with this resource

We have continued to grow in membership and draw our members from a variety of PG specific counselling services across NSW and other States, local service clubs and members of the general public.

Our vice –chairperson, Kate Roberts represented us at a NAGS Conference in November 2005 in Alice Sprigs. As part of that event she presented an overview of our work at the pre-conference Health Promotion Forum and continues to passionately advocate on health promotion issues on our behalf.

Once again we were host to Responsible Gambling Awareness Week (RGAW) at a State level and have been lobbying this year to see this develop into a National Week. Kate Roberts continues to liaise across the States and Territories with a variety of stakeholders to see this recognised as a significant National Week for awareness raising.

GAW (NSW) this year saw a pubic launch in Sydney with Professor Jan McMillen (ANU Centre for Gambling Research) as our key note speaker. Professor McMillen’s paper (available on our website) addressed a number of health promotion and early intervention issues dear to our hearts. In many ways she highlighted the main thrust of our organisation which is to see problem gambling recognised within the context of a potential harm continuum from gambling at a social level towards it’s more problematic and pathological level. With need for harm reduction strategies and informed choice at social, individual and environmental level.

We have therefore continued this year to lobby our State government through the NSW Department of Gaming and Racing and the NSW Department of Health to get this continuum reflected in service delivery. As yet there is still a long way to go with the focus still heavily emphasised at the tertiary (treatment) as opposed to primary (prevention) levels of care. We will continue to put our energy into redressing some of this balance.

On a financial note I am pleased to acknowledge the support we have had in this past year from the St. Georges Basin Country Club and the ongoing support we have received through local Clubs via the CDSE funding Scheme. These small grants have been the primary source of support for our newsletter and website activities. We continue to acknowledge our effective relationships with our local gambling venues in mutually supporting responsible gambling. I would like to mention specifically the Nowra Bowling Club who continue to regularly handout our awareness raising video - Less than Even, as part of their self exclusion program, and also the Shoalhaven Heads Golf Club who received our first RGAW award for providing a “Pokies Free” environment for its members

Our continued search for sustainable funding (to expand our education programs in particular) from other sources remains frustratingly unfruitful at this point in time despite our application to the Area Assistance Grants Program and direct approaches to the DGR in November last year. The DGR felt our request to be premature given they have not as yet developed a policy on health promotion and early intervention as yet. We live in hope

As we remain a purely voluntary organisation at this stage, I would like to thank our outgoing committee for their diligence and commitment as volunteers and stretched community workers who go beyond the call of duty to support this service. Without their efforts the organisation would falter like so many other small community groups. Thanks then must go to Dorothy, Karen (R), Karen (C), Carole, Kate, Christine, Debbie and Melissa.

Thanks also to the many others who have found time to spare an ear or a hand for GIS work particularly the volunteers from the Nowra Neighbourhood Centre who assist with the newsletter distribution and the many packers for the information resource kits in RGAW. We would particularly like to thank Joh, our regular administrative volunteer, who has been in charge of making sure our video orders are responded to promptly and assisting out treasurer with other duties. I encourage their ongoing participation in the organisation.

I wish the organisation ongoing success as I stand down from this position but will continue to remain involved - in what I see as a valuable and much needed service to the community.

Erwin Way

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