Commission releases UK young gamblers report

Britain’s Gambling Commission has issued its annual Young People and Gambling Report, a study to help understand children’s and young people’s exposure to, and involvement in, all types of gambling.

Conducted in schools through pupils completing online surveys in class, the report collected data from nearly 3,500 11 to 16 year-olds and, for the first time, 17-year-olds.

The surveys showed that 26 per cent spent their own money on some form of gambling in the previous 12 months, compared with 31 per cent in 2022. Four per cent admitted playing some form of regulated gambling, down from five per cent, and 0.7 per cent were identified as problem gamblers compared with 0.9 per cent last year.

It also showed that 55 per cent had seen gambling advertising offline, down from 66 per cent in 2022, and 53 per cent had seen advertising online, down from 63 per cent.