Following a two-year hiatus due to Covid, the U.K. Gambling Commission has issued the latest edition of its “Young People and Gambling Report,” which surveyed 2,559 young people aged 11 to 16 on their gambling habits. It surveyed youths in England, Scotland and Wales.
The commission first published the survey in 2011. The survey informs the commission in proposing market safeguards aimed at protecting children.
The two years when the survey wasn’t published was used by the research team to focus more on specific influences on children vulnerable to problem gambling.
At the top of the survey was the finding that “31 percent of 11 to 16-year-olds had spent their own money on any gambling activity in the past 12 months.” That compares to 37 percent in 2020.
The survey reveals that 30 percent of children in the age group spent their own money on gambling, and that arcade games such as penny pushers and claw grabs are the most popular.
Next in popularity was games with friends and family, with 15 percent involvement.
Statistics showed a large drop in 2022 with the National Lottery, with 1 percent for 2022, compared to 7 percent in 2020.
The survey identified 0.9 percent as problem gamblers, 2.4 percent as at-risk gamblers and 27.3 percent as non-problem gamblers.
The survey also found that young people who see family members gamble are more likely to do it with their own money.
The survey found that 64 percent of those surveyed felt that “gambling was dangerous,” while 70 percent felt they were well-informed about those dangers.
While 78 percent of children reported gambling because they thought it was fun, 36 percent believed they had a good chance to win.
The survey declared, “We are committed to understanding and acting on these findings in more detail to help us, and a variety of other stakeholders, appreciate if and how young people are playing on regulated and non-regulated products, the challenges, and the wider implications.”
