About us
Gambling Lived Experience Network (GLEN) is an independent charity amplifying the voices of people with lived experience of gambling‑related harm. Its primary purpose is to promote, and support lived experience knowledge in ways that deepen understanding and positively influence the policies, processes and legislation that govern gambling and the support available to those harmed by it across the UK.
Established in 2021, GLEN has a clear ambition to make a meaningful difference to people’s lives by ensuring lived experience can participate in, and influence, national debate and policy‑making across the gambling sector.
To support this ambition, GLEN exists to:
Act as an independent and credible lived experience voice
Provide thought leadership and constructive challenge
Ensure lived experience insight is visible, valued and applied in decision‑making
GLEN does not deliver frontline treatment or support services. Instead, it connects, amplifies and mobilises lived experience through a national network and community outreach programme. GLEN works by taking conversations about gambling harm into existing communities where harm is real but often hidden, creating safe and credible spaces for people to share insight, build collective voice and influence change.
Through this network‑based approach, GLEN ensures lived experience perspectives are not confined to formal service settings or reduced to individual testimony. Instead, insight is gathered, strengthened and brought into national conversations around policy, commissioning and system design — ensuring decision‑makers are informed by those most directly affected.
GLEN is guided by clear values embedded throughout the network:
Honesty: As individuals with lived experience, honesty with ourselves and others is essential, and the network is committed to communicating openly and transparently.
Integrity: GLEN acts with integrity, doing what it says it will and always seeking to do what is right.
Hope: GLEN provides hope and inspiration to those experiencing gambling harms, drawing strength from lived experience journeys and recovery.
Without judgement: As a network of people with lived experience, GLEN recognises shared humanity and focuses not on the past, but on what people can do now.
As a relatively young organisation, GLEN is still in the process of building and embedding its systems, governance and operating model. Established in 2021, it remains at an important formative stage, with the opportunity to shape ways of working, strengthen organisational foundations and embed lived‑experience leadership from the outset. This creates a compelling and exciting moment for senior leadership and Board members to help guide GLEN’s next phase of development, ensuring that robust structures, culture and strategy evolve in line with its values and ambition. Operating within a rapidly changing gambling harms landscape - including the introduction of a new statutory levy and the appointment of a new Interim CEO - GLEN is well positioned to play a central role in embedding lived experience at the heart of the future system.
Finances
GLEN has secured initial funding to support its transition and organisational development, providing a strong platform for growth. As the gambling harms commissioning landscape evolves, the charity is actively pursuing further funding and focused on building a sustainable financial model that enables long-term impact and independence.
Equity, diversity and inclusion statement
The Gambling Lived Experience Network (GLEN) is committed to equality, diversity and inclusion in all aspects of its work. GLEN values lived experience as an essential form of expertise and believes that diverse perspectives strengthen the organisation’s impact and credibility.
GLEN recognises that gambling harm affects people across all communities and is often shaped by wider social inequalities. The organisation is committed to removing barriers that may prevent people from participating in its work, leadership and governance.
In recruitment, GLEN aims to create fair, transparent and accessible processes, and actively encourages applications from individuals with lived experience of gambling harm, particularly those from under‑represented or marginalised backgrounds. GLEN welcomes diverse career paths, values transferable skills and offers reasonable adjustments to support inclusive participation.
GLEN is an equal opportunities organisation and is committed to treating all applicants with dignity, fairness and respect.