Report
Gambling Survey for Great Britain - Year 1 (2023), wave 2 report: Official statistics
Gambling Survey for Great Britain - Year 1 (2023), wave 2 report
Response to the survey
Data tables are provided in Statistics on gambling participation – Year 1 (2023), wave 2 .
Address-level response rates
Table A.1: Address-level response summarises the address-level response rates.
In total, 18,778 addresses were issued. In remote surveys (that is where participants complete the survey independently without any involvement from an interviewer), no information is known about the reason for non-response in individual addresses. However, it was assumed that around 9 percent of addresses in the sample (1,690) were not residential and were therefore ineligible to complete the survey1.
Table A.1: Address-level response, summarises the address-level response rates
| Response of issued addresses | Total addresses (number) | Total addresses (percentage) | Total eligible (percentage) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Issued addresses | 18,778 | 100% | Not applicable |
| Assumed ineligible | 1,690 | 9% | Not applicable |
| Assumed eligible (residential addresses) | 17,088 | 91% | 100% |
| Refusal or unable to take part | 23 | 0% | 0% |
| No response | 13,658 | 73% | 80% |
| Productive addresses | 3,407 | 18% | 20% |
In total, 3,407 addresses were productive. The adjusted address-level response rate, that is the proportion of eligible addresses where a questionnaire was completed by at least one adult, was 20 percent (slightly lower than the target of 22 percent). There was no response from 13,658 addresses and a further 23 addresses had an individual contact the office to say they did not wish or were unable to take part.
Table A.2 Address-level response, by country shows the breakdown of the issued sample in England, Scotland and Wales and the household response rate in each country. In total, 86 percent of the issued addresses were in England, 9 percent in Scotland and 5 percent in Wales. Household response rates were 20 percent across all three countries.
Table A.2: Address-level response, by country
| Country | Total issued addresses (number) | Total issued addresses (percentage) | Total assumed eligible addresses (number) | Total assumed eligible addresses (percentage) | Total productive addresses (number) | Household response rate (percentage) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| England | 16,111 | 86% | 14,661 | 86% | 2,924 | 20% |
| Scotland | 1,734 | 9% | 1,578 | 9% | 314 | 20% |
| Wales | 933 | 5% | 849 | 5% | 169 | 20% |
| All addresses | 18,778 | 100% | 17,088 | 100% | 3,407 | 20% |
In English regions, the highest response rates were achieved in the South West (23 percent), South East (22 percent), and East of England (22 percent) and the lowest in London (15 percent), West Midlands (18 percent) and North West (19 percent) as shown in Table A.3, Address-level response, by Government Office Region.
Table A.3: Address-level response, by Government Office Region
| Government Office Region | Total issued addresses (number) | Total issued addresses (percentage) | Total assumed eligible addresses (number) | Total assumed eligible addresses (percentage) | Total productive addresses (number) | Household response rate (percentage) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| North East | 812 | 4% | 739 | 4% | 148 | 20% |
| North West | 2,177 | 12% | 1,981 | 12% | 378 | 19% |
| Yorkshire and the Humber | 1,592 | 8% | 1,449 | 8% | 289 | 20% |
| East Midlands | 1,392 | 7% | 1,267 | 7% | 265 | 21% |
| West Midlands | 1,647 | 9% | 1,499 | 9% | 270 | 18% |
| East of England | 1,789 | 10% | 1,628 | 10% | 356 | 22% |
| London | 2,406 | 13% | 2,189 | 13% | 328 | 15% |
| South East | 2,604 | 14% | 2,370 | 14% | 534 | 22% |
| South West | 1,692 | 9% | 1,540 | 9% | 356 | 23% |
| Scotland | 1,734 | 9% | 1,578 | 9% | 314 | 20% |
| Wales | 933 | 5% | 849 | 5% | 169 | 20% |
| All addresses | 18,778 | 100% | 17,088 | 100% | 3,407 | 20% |
Individual-level response rates
Following the process of removing duplicate responses2, cases deemed to have completed the online questionnaire too quickly to have properly engaged with the questions and cases above the maximum two completions per household3, it was assumed that all responses in the dataset were from 4,985 unique individuals who had completed the questionnaire.
Table A.4: Individual-level response, by age and sex
| Age group (years) | Total participants male (percentage) | Total participants female (percentage) | Total participants all (percentage) | Total Great Britain population adult males (percentage) | Total Great Britain population adult females (percentage) | Total Great Britain population adult all (percentage) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 18 to 24 | 4% | 6% | 5% | 11% | 10% | 10% |
| 25 to 34 | 13% | 17% | 15% | 17% | 17% | 17% |
| 35 to 44 | 15% | 17% | 16% | 16% | 16% | 16% |
| 45 to 54 | 14% | 15% | 15% | 17% | 16% | 17% |
| 55 to 64 | 19% | 18% | 18% | 16% | 16% | 16% |
| 65 to 74 | 19% | 16% | 17% | 13% | 13% | 13% |
| 75 and over | 16% | 10% | 13% | 10% | 12% | 11% |
| Total | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% |
| Unweighted bases | 2,158 | 2,816 | 4,974 | 25,005,805 | 26,712,827 | 51,718,632 |
Table A.4 Individual-level response, by age and sex shows the age and sex profile of the 4,985 responding adults who completed the questionnaire: 2,158 males and 2,816 females (8 participants did not respond to the sex questions, and 3 participants did not respond to the age question).
In total, 43 percent of the responding unweighted sample were men and 57 percent were women. This under-representation of men is similar to that seen in the latest published results for other surveys with the same completion modes, for example, the British Social Attitudes (BSA) 2023 survey BSA 40 Technical details (natcen.ac.uk) (opens in new Tab)(pdf). In total, 44 percent of the BSA 2023 unweighted main sample were men and 56 percent women.
Those in the younger age groups were less likely to take part than their older counterparts: 5 percent of responding adults were aged 18 to 24 years (this age group makes up 10 percent of the adult population of Great Britain) and 17 percent were aged 65 to 74, this age group makes up 13 percent of the adult population of Great Britain.
This difference in taking part was particularly pronounced for male participants: 4 percent of the male sample were aged 18 to 24 years (this age-sex group makes up 11 percent of the male adult population of Great Britain). The equivalent proportions for females aged 18 to 24 years were 6 percent and 10 percent. The national percentages are based on the 2022 mid-year population estimates for Great Britain: Office for National Statistics (ONS) (opens in new Tab).
Table A.5: Individual-level response, by mode of completion and sex
| Sex | Individual-level response: Online completions (percentage) | Individual-level response: Postal completions (percentage) | Individual-level response: Total completions (number) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Male | 64% | 36% | 2,161 |
| Female | 66% | 34% | 2,816 |
| All participants | 65% | 35% | 4,985 |
| Unweighted bases | 3,252 | 1,733 | 4,985 |
Table A.5 Individual-level response, by mode of completion and sex shows response rates by mode of completion, overall and for males and females separately. Overall, 65 percent (3,252) completed the survey online and 35 percent (1,733) completed a postal questionnaire. These results are broadly in line with expectations, based on previous surveys.
There was little difference between male and female participants in the mode of completion. However, the percentage of those completing the survey online decreased markedly with age (and hence from the age of 25 to 34, the percentage completing the postal questionnaire increased). In all age groups, except the oldest two (aged 65 to 74 and aged 75 and over), a higher proportion completed the survey online rather than filling in the postal questionnaire. In total, 45 percent of those aged 65 to 74 and 33 percent of those aged 75 and over completed the survey online compared to between 60 percent and 87 percent of those in the younger age groups as shown in Table A.6, Individual-level response, by mode of completion and age.
Table A.6: Individual-level response, by mode of completion and age
| Age group (years) | Individual-level response: Online completions (percentage) | Individual-level response: Postal completions (percentage) | Individual-level response: Total completions (number) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 18 to 24 | 84% | 16% | 270 |
| 25 to 34 | 87% | 13% | 745 |
| 35 to 44 | 82% | 18% | 816 |
| 45 to 54 | 74% | 26% | 745 |
| 55 to 64 | 60% | 40% | 909 |
| 65 to 74 | 45% | 55% | 867 |
| 75 plus | 33% | 67% | 630 |
| Unweighted bases | 3,249 | 1,733 | 4,982 |
The mode of survey completion was similar for those who participated in gambling in the past 4 weeks and those who did not. A higher proportion completed the online survey compared to the postal survey in both groups, with 68 percent of those who gambled in the past 4 weeks and 64 percent of those who did not gamble in the past 4 weeks completing the survey online as shown in Table A.7: Individual response, by mode of completion and gambling prevalence in the past 4 weeks.
Table A.7: Individual-level response, by mode of completion and gambling prevalence in the past 4 weeks
| Gambling prevalence in the past 4 weeks | Individual-level response: Online completions (percentage) | Individual-level response: Postal completions (percentage) | Individual-level response: Total completions (number) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gambled in the past 4 weeks | 68% | 32% | 2,372 |
| Not gambled in the past 4 weeks | 64% | 36% | 2,546 |
| Unweighted bases | 3,248 | 1,670 | 4,918 |
References
1When estimating the proportion of ineligible addresses on an online survey, it is best practice to assume the same ineligibility rate as a recent face-to-face survey which uses the same sample frame and sampling approach and for which detailed outcomes are known for the entire issued sample. Ineligibility rates in Postcode Address File (PAF) face-to-face surveys tend to fall between 8 percent and 10 percent and 9 percent is the rate recorded in the most recent face-to-face British Social Attitudes Survey (2019) and so has been used as an appropriate default for this survey.
2Where a single participant completed the survey a second time.
3Where more than two people in a household completed the survey (for example, two completing the survey online and two different people completing postal questionnaires.
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GSGB Year 1 (2023), wave 2 report - Questionnaire completion times
Last updated: 10 February 2025
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Data points within this report have been updated. For further information visit the notes section within Statistics on gambling participation – Year 1 (2023), wave 2: Official statistics.