UK schools to teach teens about gambling

Students in the U.K. wiil soon get an education on how to approach gambling the right way. Starting in September, the Department of Education has ordered gambling to be a compulsary part of the curriculum for teenagers..

U.K. Schools Minister Nick Gibb noted the program will focus on the harms of gambling as well as other debt-related matters. It will be included as part of a compulsory ‘Personal, Social, Health and Economic’ (PSHE) education program.

Gibb explained: “I want to ensure every child understands the risks, which is why we are making health education — including issues such as addiction and cumulative debt — compulsory from September.”

This has been tried before by Demos, which released the results of a two-year pilot education program in 2018. The program was intended to give students the tools so they would recognize risky behavior, such as gambling. The program included 650 14-year-olds who were shown how to “weigh risk, identify manipulative behavior, manage impulses and help others” who may have a problem.