50% rise in people seeking gambling support

The number of people being referred to specialist gambling clinics has increased by more than 50% in just a year.

The figures come from the NHS - which is today (Saturday, 16 March) launching more specialist treatment centres across the UK.

The new site in Sheffield, Yorkshire is opening amid continued demand for the services they offer.

This builds on 14 existing problem gambling NHS clinics across England, seven of which have opened in the past year - including the one in Liverpool, which launched early in March.

The health service says it treats up to 3,000 people annually and is funded by NHS England.

The first clinic opened in London in 2008 and treats patients over the age of 13.

A total of 421 referrals were made to this clinic in the past year.

But the chief executive of the NHS, Amanda Pritchard, is clear that help for addicts has to come from places beyond the health service.

"We are asking for more to be done from societies as a whole, from the gambling industry, to help to manage what can be a really serious set of problems with problem gambling and gambling addiction, which can be deeply destructive and destroy lives," she said.

The gambling industry in the UK is worth £14bn every year

Merseyside doctor Matt Gaskell says the clines are urgently needed:

"We're picking up pieces from a gambling industry that's well out of control and our laws and regulations haven't kept up with it. People are suffering - people are struggling - it's hidden, it's quiet. Families and our communities are suffering at the hands of the industry so it is really important people come forward and get the help and support they need and deserve."

Between 2022 and 2023, there were 1,389 referrals to NHS gambling clinics in England. That was a 79% rise on two years earlier - 775 referrals were made between 2020 and 2021.

The Gambling Commission says it is in the process of piloting new ways of assessing a customer's financial vulnerabilities, as part of new government proposals.

The Betting and Gaming Council (BGC), which represents the majority of betting shops, online betting and gaming, told Sky News: "BGC members each year contribute tens of millions of pounds towards research, prevention and treatment to help prevent gambling-related harm and tackle problem gambling, which is currently paid through a unique voluntary levy scheme.

"This funds an independent network of charities, which treats around 85% of all problem gamblers receiving treatment in Britain."

For more information on gambling, please visit the NHS website.