Gambling Treatment Referrals up by 48% for January, GamCare Says

The number of people being referred to treatment and peer-based support services in Great Britain by gambling charity GamCare increased significantly year-on-year for January, with the total of 996 being up by 48%.

This was one of the highest totals of monthly referrals GamCare has reported in the last five years, with only three other months in that time producing a higher number of referrals.   When excluding referrals to peer-based support, treatment referrals went up to 742, from 603 the previous year.

GamCare said within its report that users can now access multiple, diverse avenues for support. The number of referrals per client in January on average has increased each year for those referred. The number increased from 1.1 in 2023-24, to 1.2 in 2024-25, to 1.3 in 2025-26.

Victoria Corbishley, GamCare CEO, said:

“More people affected by gambling harms are choosing to start treatment. The National Gambling Helpline is a 24/7, confidential route to support, and our advisers rapidly connect people with free, specialist help across Great Britain. That first conversation remains the crucial turning point.”

What the numbers suggest

In 2024/25, GamCare made 7,100 referrals into further treatment services, and helped deliver 8,100 treatment sessions regionally, with an average wait time of just 1.3 days. More than 2,150 professionals have been trained through GamCare’s Women’s Programme, embedding gambling harm awareness into women’s services.

The numbers posted by GamCare point to a trend where an increasing number of people in Great Britain are seeking help for potentially problematic gambling behaviour.

In December, GamCare reported it took more than 130,000 calls and online messages through the National Gambling Helpline between April 2024 and March 2025, marking a rise from 80,000 calls, chats and treatment sessions in 2023/24.

These numbers may not necessarily indicate that problem gambling behaviour is increasing, as it could be a sign that more people are seeking out help from GamCare.

However, research from British regulator the Gambling Commission showed the problem gambling rate in Great Britain rose to 2.7% for 2024. The number was published as part of the Gambling Survey for Great Britain.

The 2024 GSGB survey was the second of its kind to be published. Those two surveys have indicated problem gambling rates have been significantly higher than the data was showing in previous surveys published by the Commission. The Commission previously announced that in the year to December 2022, a total of 0.2% of respondents classed as problem gamblers.

The data from 2022 was based on the Commission’s quarterly telephone survey, which has since been replaced by the GSGB. In the quarterly telephone survey, problem gamblers were classed as anyone who scored four or more on the PGSI scale, but it was still the most at-risk group.

What is GamCare?

Founded in 1997, GamCare is a registered charity which provides information, advice and support for anyone affected by gambling harms. GamCare founded and operate the National Gambling Helpline, and creates awareness about safer gambling and treatment.

Among its main ambitions are making sure gambling harms are widely recognised and prevented, and providing universal access to effective tools and support.

Industry initiatives

The Betting and Gaming Council, which represents more than 90% of retail betting shops, online betting and gaming operators, casinos and bingo operators in the UK, runs a number of safer gambling initiatives, including Safer Gambling Week, research, education and treatment, and its own code of conduct.

Since 2019, operators who are part of the Industry Group for Responsible Gambling are signed up to a whistle-to-whistle ban on gambling adverts being showed during live sporting events prior to the 9pm watershed