Following a week of industry debate on gambling harm, the Princess of Wales has used Addiction Awareness Week in the UK to call for more honesty and compassion around addiction of all kinds. Speaking as patron of the Forward Trust, Catherine highlighted how stigma still shapes the lives of people dealing with dependency, whether through drugs, alcohol or gambling.
Her message has a simple intention: to make it easier for people to talk about what they are going through.
“Addiction is not a choice or a personal failing but a complex mental health condition that should be met with empathy and support,” she said. Words that echo several of the themes raised in the industry recently, particularly the push for earlier conversations and more direct engagement with people at risk.
She added that the current silence helps no one. “But still, even now in 2025, people’s experience of addiction is shaped by fear, shame and judgment. This needs to change. The stigma surrounding those who face addiction allows it to thrive behind closed doors, impacting families and communities, and ultimately ruining lives.”
Catherine’s comments also reflect what treatment providers and harm-prevention specialists have said for years. Most people do not reach out the moment they recognise a problem. They often wait, hoping things will steady themselves, until the situation becomes much harder to manage.
“Many of us will know someone who is struggling with an addiction. Now is the moment to show our compassion and love to help them, or their friends and family, to reach out to organisations like the Forward Trust for support. Recovery is hard, but with the right treatment it is possible. And this begins with a conversation, a listening ear and showing we care.”
Her emphasis is on small, human gestures rather than heavy processes or formal intervention. A conversation, a check-in or simply being present can be the first step that encourages someone to seek proper help.
“So please join the conversation. By talking about it in the open, together we can bring addiction and the harm it causes out of the shadows.”
Fresh polling from Ipsos for the Forward Trust’s ‘Taking Action on Addiction’ campaign shows how common these experiences are. Of the 2,124 people surveyed, more than half say they have either lived with addiction themselves or know someone who has. The survey also indicates broad agreement that addiction should be handled as a health issue. According to the findings, 81 percent of respondents believe those dependent on alcohol, drugs, medication or gambling should be treated as people who need help rather than judgement.
Catherine has also announced a new early years research project focused on “technoference”, the term used to describe digital interruptions that cut into parent child interactions. The Royal Foundation Centre for Early Childhood is providing £100,000 to fund the work, which will look at how digital habits shape family dynamics and what can be done to reduce the impact.
Researchers will work with families across the UK to understand how and when distractions occur, and how those patterns influence stress, communication and daily routines. The findings will be used to develop guidance for health visitors, educators and early years professionals.
Although the study is not linked to gambling, it joins a growing body of work highlighting how digital behaviour affects attention, impulse control and emotional bandwidth. For an industry shifting toward a more holistic view of player wellbeing, the timing feels relevant, and the Princess’s message reinforces the wider push to treat addiction and digital health as part of the same societal conversation.
#AddictionAwareness #MentalHealth #CompassionFirst #ForwardTrust #PublicHealth
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