Report
Young People and Gambling 2024: Official statistics
Gambling Commission report produced by Ipsos on young people and their gambling behaviour, attitudes and awareness in 2024.
Contents
- Executive summary
- Young people’s active involvement in gambling
- Summary
- Definitions
- Young people's active involvement in gambling
- The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition – Multiple Response Juvenile (DSM-IV-MR-J) problem gambling screen
- The impacts of gambling on young people
- Summary
- The impact of gambling on relationships
- Young people’s feelings when gambling
- The impact of gambling on young people’s engagement with school and homework
- The impact of gambling on young people’s sleep
- The impact of gambling on spending
- Experience of ever seeing a family member gambling
- The impact of family members’ gambling on young people
- Wider experience of gambling
- Summary
- Wider experience and active involvement in gambling
- Experience of different gambling activities
- Who young people were with when they experienced gambling activities
- Being stopped from gambling for being too young
- Setting gambling in the context of other risk taking behaviours
- Games and gaming machines
- Summary
- Young people spending their own money on games and gaming machines
- Overall experience of playing games and gaming machines
- Who young people were with when they played gaming machines
- Types of gaming machine played
- Playing arcade machines in adults-only areas
- Online gambling
- Summary
- Young people’s active involvement in online gambling
- Overall experience of online gambling
- Online gambling using parents’ or guardians’ accounts
- Paying for and betting with in-game items in video games
- Methods of paying for in-game items and to open loot boxes
- Lotteries and lottery style games
- Summary
- Active involvement with lotteries and lottery style games
- Wider experience of lotteries and lottery style games
- Buying a National Lottery draw ticket or scratchcard
- Who young people were with when playing lotteries and lottery style games
- Attitudes towards gambling and reasons for gambling
- Summary
- Reasons why young people gamble
- Reasons why young people do not gamble
- Feeling informed about gambling
- Recall of gambling adverts and promotion
- Summary
- Recall of gambling advertising or promotions
- Frequency of seeing or hearing gambling adverts or promotions
- Perceived impact of gambling adverts on unplanned spending
- Engagement with gambling related content on social media and streaming platforms
- Appendices
- List of gambling activities and definitions
The impact of family members’ gambling on young people
The impact of family members’ gambling on young people’s emotions
Young people who noted in the survey that they had ever seen family members in their household gamble were asked the extent to which this had made them feel worried and/or sad.
Over 1 in 15 young people (7 percent) who had seen family members gamble noted that it had made them feel worried within the past 12 months, at least sometimes. 1 in 20 (5 percent) reported that it had made them feel sad, at least sometimes. Figure 2.10 shows the breakdown of responses.
Figure 2.10: The impact of family members’ gambling on young people’s emotions
Figure 2.10 information
GC_NEWFELTBADFAMSAD GC_NEWFELTBADFAMWOR. In the past 12 months how often, if at all, would you say that gambling among your family members and/or people you live with has made you feel…
Base: All answering who have seen family members live with gamble 'Worried' (868), 'Sad' (868).
| The impact of family members’ gambling on young people’s emotions | Never (percentage) | Rarely (percentage) | Sometimes (percentage) | Often (percentage) | All the time (percentage) | Do not know (percentage) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Worried | 81% | 7% | 4% | 2% | 1% | 4% |
| Sad | 86% | 4% | 2% | 2% | 1% | 4% |
Young people from black and other minority ethnic backgrounds were more likely than those from white ethnic groups to say that family members gambling had made them feel worried, at least sometimes (14 percent, compared to 6 percent).
The proportions of young people reporting having felt worried and/or sad due to other people in their household gambling have remained consistent across the surveys in 2022, 2023 and 2024.
The impact of family members’ gambling on young people’s well-being
Young people who had ever seen family members gamble were asked if this had affected specific aspects of their lives either sometimes, often, all of the time or never. A combination figure for ‘sometimes’, ‘often’, or ‘all of the time’ has been used to the report the impact that gambling can have on young people’s well-being, unless specified otherwise.
The most common impact of gambling by a family member, as shown in Figure 2.11 was that it helped to pay for other things or activities for example holidays, trips, clubs. Just over 1 in 10 (13 percent) said that this happened either sometimes, often, or all of the time.
Family members gambling impacted less on parents or guardians having time to spend with young people (7 percent) or the availability of food at home or money on school canteen card or account (mentioned by 4 percent). However, 9 percent of young people felt that it had resulted in more arguments or tension at home.
Figure 2.11: The impact of family members’ gambling on young people’s well-being
Figure 2.11 information
GC_FAMGAMFOOD, GC_FAMGAMPAY, GC_FAMLEDTME, GC_FAMLEDARG. Thinking about the last 12 months, how often, if at all,
Base: All participants (answering) who have seen family members live with gamble – 'Stopped you from having enough food (food at home or money on school canteen card and/or account' 2024 (889); 'Helped your family pay for other things or activities' 2024 (890); 'Your parents or guardians having less time to spend with you' 2024 (888); 'More arguments or tension at home' 2024 (891).
| The impact of family members’ gambling on young people’s well-beings | Never (percentage) | Rarely (percentage) | Sometimes (percentage) | Often (percentage) | All the time (percentage) | Do not know (percentage) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stopped you from having enough food (food at home or money on school canteen card and/or account) | 86% | 3% | 1% | 1% | 2% | 3% |
| Helped your family pay for other things or activities | 66% | 11% | 8% | 2% | 3% | 6% |
| Your parents or guardians having less time to spend with you | 80% | 6% | 4% | 1% | 2% | 3% |
| More arguments or tension at home | 77% | 6% | 3% | 3% | 2% | 3% |
There were no statistically significant differences by gender, age or ethnic background in the likelihood of young people citing not having enough food, having parents or guardians spending less time with them or noting an increase in the number of arguments or tension at home. However, young people that have experienced gambling in the last 7 days were more likely than those having experienced gambling in the last 4 weeks or 12 months to have reported that gambling helped their family pay for other things or activities (21 percent compared to 13 percent and 12 percent), stopped them from having enough food (11 percent compared to 4 percent and 2 percent), led to their parents or guardians having less time to spend with them (13 percent compared to 4 percent and 5 percent) and more arguments or tension at home (14 percent compared to 6 percent and 5 percent), at least sometimes.
The proportion of young people indicating that their family’s gambling never led to not having enough food decreased from 90 percent in 2022 to 86 percent in 2024. Similarly, the proportion of young people indicating that their family’s gambling never led to their parents or guardian having less time to spend with them or more arguments or tension at home decreased between 2022 and 2024 (from 85 to 80 percent and from 82 percent to 77 percent respectively).
Table 2.11: The impact of family members' gambling on young people's well-being in 2022, 2023 and 2024
Table 2.11 information
Base: All participants (answering) who have seen family members live with gamble – 'Stopped you from having enough food (food at home or money on school canteen card and/or account' 2022 (652), 2023 (774), 2024 (889); 'Helped your family pay for other things or activities' 2022 (651), 2023 (772), 2024 (890); 'Your parents or guardians having less time to spend with you' 2022 (651), 2023 (774), 2024 (888); 'More arguments or tension at home' 2022 (652), 2023 (773), 2024 (891).
| Stopped you from having enough food (food at home or money on school canteen card and/or account) | 2022 (percentage) | 2023 (percentage) | 2024 (percentage) | Statistical differences 2024 compared to 2022 | Statistical differences 2024 compared to 2023 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Never | 90% | 87% | 86% | Significant decrease | No significant difference |
| Rarely | 2% | 4% | 3% | No significant difference | No significant difference |
| Sometimes | 1% | 1% | 1% | No significant difference | No significant difference |
| Often | 0% | 1% | 1% | Significant increase | No significant difference |
| All the time | 1% | 1% | 2% | No significant difference | No significant difference |
| Do not know | 2% | 2% | 3% | No significant difference | No significant difference |
| Sometimes, often and all the time | 3% | 3% | 4% | No significant difference | No significant difference |
| Helped your family pay for other things or activities | 2022 (percentage) | 2023 (percentage) | 2024 (percentage) | Statistical differences 2024 compared to 2022 | Statistical differences 2024 compared to 2023 |
| Never | 68% | 68% | 66% | No significant difference | No significant difference |
| Rarely | 12% | 10% | 11% | No significant difference | No significant difference |
| Sometimes | 7% | 7% | 8% | No significant difference | No significant difference |
| Often | 2% | 3% | 2% | No significant difference | No significant difference |
| All the time | 2% | 2% | 3% | No significant difference | No significant difference |
| Do not know | 6% | 6% | 6% | No significant difference | No significant difference |
| Sometimes, often and all the time | 11% | 12% | 13% | No significant difference | No significant difference |
| Your parents or guardians having less time to spend with you | 2022 (percentage) | 2023 (percentage) | 2024 (percentage) | Statistical differences 2024 compared to 2022 | Statistical differences 2024 compared to 2023 |
| Never | 85% | 82% | 80% | Significant decrease | No significant difference |
| Rarely | 4% | 4% | 6% | No significant difference | No significant difference |
| Sometimes | 3% | 3% | 4% | No significant difference | No significant difference |
| Often | 2% | 2% | 1% | No significant difference | No significant difference |
| All the time | 2% | 2% | 2% | No significant difference | No significant difference |
| Do not know | 2% | 2% | 3% | No significant difference | No significant difference |
| Sometimes, often and all the time | 6% | 7% | 7% | No significant difference | No significant difference |
| More arguments or tension at home | 2022 (percentage) | 2023 (percentage) | 2024 (percentage) | Statistical differences 2024 compared to 2022 | Statistical differences 2024 compared to 2023 |
| Never | 82% | 77% | 77% | Significant decrease | No significant difference |
| Rarely | 5% | 7% | 6% | No significant difference | No significant difference |
| Sometimes | 2% | 4% | 3% | No significant difference | No significant difference |
| Often | 3% | 3% | 3% | No significant difference | No significant difference |
| All the time | 2% | 3% | 2% | No significant difference | No significant difference |
| Do not know | 3% | 3% | 3% | No significant difference | No significant difference |
| Sometimes, often and all the time | 7% | 9% | 9% | No significant difference | No significant difference |
Experience of ever seeing a family member gambling
Last updated: 7 November 2024
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