GC report: Child problem gambling in the UK has doubled in 2024
Regulator also finds 5% of children have missed school entirely due to gambling-related issues as director calls on schools and parents to help
The number of children experiencing gambling-related harm in the UK since the start of the calendar year has seen a “significant” rise, according to the Gambling Commission (GC).
The regulator’s Young People and Gambling Report 2024, which analysed children’s exposure to and involvement in all types of gambling, revealed that the proportion of young people registering a score of four or more on the DSM-IV-MR-J scale had more than doubled from 0.7% in 2023 to 1.5% in 2024.
In addition, the number of boys scoring a four or more on the DSM-IV-MR-J increased to 1.7%, as well as 1.9% among children aged between 14-17.
The DSM-IV-MR-J scale is a world-renowned psychometric tool to assess problem gambling in young people.
The GC collected data from 3,869 school pupils aged between 11-17 via online self-completion surveys in the classroom between January and June.
In the report’s statistical summary, the GC said that: “Statistically significant differences are highlighted across the years 2022, 2023 and 2024.”
Other findings revealed that 27% of young people spent their own money on gambling in the 12 months prior to the survey being conducted – the most common types of participation being arcade game machines (20%), betting with friends or family (11%) and playing cards with friends or family for money (5%).
The aforementioned gambling types were legal and did not include any age-restricted products, according to the GC.
The study also showed 21% of young people spent their own money on regulated forms of gambling, while 15% played on unregulated forms of gambling that fall outside of the regulator’s remit.
Of the children surveyed, 26% said they had seen family members they live with gamble, while 8% reported gambling had prompted arguments at home.
The Gambling Commission’s study found one in 17 children (6%) who had actively gambled in the past 12 months felt it had impacted their schoolwork, while 5% admitted it had led them to miss school entirely.
On the data’s findings, Tim Miller, the GC’s executive director for research and policy, said: “Today’s report gives us important insights into the relationship between young people and gambling.
“Where it relates to regulated forms of gambling, we use the data to continuously keep under review and, where needed, strengthen the suite of protections for young people that we require gambling companies to have in place.”
Miller went on to note that while regulation may not be the answer to curb some of the issues presented in the report, those same issues can nonetheless have negative consequences and the potential to cause gambling-related harm.
He explained: “The report also shows that young people often gamble in ways that do not require regulation, such as betting with their friends. Yet, these forms of gambling can also lead to some experiencing harm.
“Our report points to the opportunities parents, schools and other groups have to also help reduce gambling harm among children and young people.”
In response to the regulator’s report, a Labour government spokesperson told The Guardian: “We recognise the impact harmful gambling can have on individuals and their families and we are absolutely committed to strengthening protections for those at risk, including young people.
“Ministers are currently considering the best available evidence, including the Gambling Commission’s recent statistics, and the full range of gambling policy and will update in due course.”
A spokesperson for the Betting and Gaming Council (BGC) added: “BGC members take a zero tolerance approach to betting by children. The Young People and Gambling Survey found the most popular forms of betting by children are legal arcade games like penny pusher and claw grab machines, bets between friends or family, and playing cards for money – not with BGC members.
“Our members enforce strict age verification on all their products to prevent underage gaming. Independent figures provided by Serve Legal, show bookmakers had a 91.4 per cent age verification pass rate, better than other retailers on age-restricted products. Meanwhile, casinos had a near perfect pass rate of 98 per cent.”