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January 2025 - Education

According to a recent survey, young people are facing more exposure to gambling: A recent survey by the Gambling Commission has found that young people, aged between 11-17, are being increasingly exposed to gambling advertisements. Over half of the young people surveyed said they had seen or heard gambling advertisement via online or offline platforms throughout 2024 (62% online and 64% offline). These figures represent a 9% increase in both online and offline exposure since 2023.

The findings presented by the Gambling Commission are taken from the annual Young People and Gambling Survey (conducted in 2024 by Ipsos). The report surveyed 3,869 schoolchildren across year 7 to 12 (S1 to S6 in Scotland), who attend academies, maintained and independent schools in Great Britain. The data was collected in the first half of 2024 via an online self-report survey taken in the classroom.

Findings showed that some of the exposure to young people came from family members gambling around them (26%). Interestingly, 8% of respondents indicated that it had resulted in arguments or tension at home and 12% said that the gambling by a family member had helped pay for things at home, for example holidays, trips or clubs.

Regarding young people gambling themselves, just over one quarter (27%) said they had spent their own money on any gambling activity in the previous 12 months - 21% of which spent money on gaming machines, which are legally accessible to people under the age of 18. Of those who had spent their own money, 80% regarded it as a fun thing to do.

On a more positive note, over half of the young people said they were likely to report seeing gambling advertising on television or on an app – showing good initiative. Equally, over eighty percent (82%) said they felt well informed about the risks gambling presents.

The next version of this report will be published in November 2025.

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