Policy statements help guide Council's work in preventing gambling harm in Wyndham

Read Wyndham's policy statements which are grouped around four themes, that represent Council's role.

Council will:

1. Collaborate with those with a lived experience of gambling and with agencies that support them.

2. Support creative projects that explore/share stories and raise community awareness.

3. Promote services that assist those impacted by gambling harm, including family and friends affected by someone else’s gambling.

4. Support and assist coordination of collaborative work within the municipality in advocating for harm prevention and improved community awareness of gambling and related harms, including increased understanding of the different ways that gambling harm may be experienced depending on gender, culture, and other intersectional attributes, and the provision of gambling harm education efforts.

5. Favour the development of social and recreational options for residents – such as libraries, community centres, sports grounds and fitness centres – which provide alternative recreational outlets to gambling.

6. Continue to invest in community infrastructure, community programs and community networks to provide alternatives to gambling.

Council will collectively advocate to:

7. Continue to support the cooperative call on the Federal and State Governments to legislate changes for harm prevention, including, but not limited to:

• reduction in the number of EGMs permitted under the caps, in municipalities of socio-economic disadvantage and relatively high EGM density
• a regional cap on the number of EGMs across Wyndham limited to the current number
• reduction over time in the total number of EGMs across Wyndham
• increased investment in research on the health and wellbeing impacts of gambling including research into family violence, mental and physical health impacts
• supporting a ban on sports betting advertising on television and live stream services in Victoria in alignment with the recommendations from the Inquiry into online gambling and its impact on those experiencing gambling harm.

8. Collaborate with other local governments and work within State-wide and national forums to advocate for reform.

Council will:

9. Oppose any new application for EGMs on Council-owned or managed land.

10. Support initiatives that reduce gambling operator’s reliance on revenue from EGMs.

11. Continue to acknowledge gambling as a public health issue and, where appropriate, integrate harm prevention and reduction into future planning and programming. This includes, but is not limited to, the Municipal Public Health and Wellbeing Plan, Municipal Strategic Statement and the Wyndham Planning Scheme.

12. Continue to promote a variety of non-gambling events, activities and programs that encourage residents to lead active and healthy lives.

13. Take a public health approach in all gambling related communication. Ongoing Council communication will use terms such as ‘gambling’, ‘people harmed by gambling’, ‘gambling losses’ and ‘EGM/Poker machine operators’ and ‘gambling industry’ as opposed to ‘gaming’, ‘gaming expenditure’, ‘problem gamblers’ and ‘pokie venues’.

14. Ensure no access to online gambling on Council staff internet access points.

15. Ensure no funding, grants or sponsorship being made available for activities that promote gambling.

16. Not run Council and community events, activities, programs and social outings in venues that have EGMs.

Council will:

17. Monitor application of the Local Planning Policy on Gaming to regulate the location and operation of gambling venues.

18. Assess the social and economic impact of EGM license applications and represent community interests in regulatory processes.

19. Monitor research on existing and emerging forms of gambling and their impact on local communities.

20. Where possible, participate in and/or support relevant research efforts in order to inform local knowledge of the impacts and trends of gambling and of effective harm prevention strategies and practices.