Referrals have gone up almost 130%, with almost 2,000 people referred to gambling clinics between April and September this year, compared to just over 800 in the same period last year.
However to manage demand, the NHS has doubled the number of clinics for problem gambling in England with 15 services now operating across the country. The specialist services provide a range of support from staff including mental health practitioners, psychiatrists as well as peer support.
With 20 Premier League fixtures on Boxing Day and a big day in the winter horse racing calendar, Dr Matt Gaskell, head of the NHS Northern Gambling Service, has voiced his concerned and warned that this could create a “perfect storm” of temptation for those who have suffered from gambling harms in the past.
Dr Matt Gaskell said: “People may receive extra money as gifts or bonuses during the holiday period, or find that money is short, and could be tempted to place a bet, and end up betting more than they intended.
“With the barrage of adverts promoting festive fixtures, races, and offers, such as free Christmas bets, it can make it look enticing, but these tend to encourage people to bet at high frequency.
“I have seen first-hand at my clinic how the festive period can lead to additional gambling harms. If you’re worried about how gambling is affecting you, I urge you to please come forward to our clinics by self-referring or speak to your GP practice.”
Claire Murdoch, NHS national director for mental health said: “Addiction is a cruel disease that can take over and ruin lives. NHS England has almost doubled the number of specialist clinics available in the space of a year, so if you or someone you know is struggling with gambling addiction please come forward.
“The NHS cannot be left alone to pick up the ills caused by firms engaging in activities that fuel addiction – these companies should think hard about the potential harms to people behind their profits.”
Hundreds of thousands of people in England have a serious problem with gambling, with more than a quarter of 11-17-year-olds having gambled their own money in the last year according to the Gambling Commission.
Amid this growing demand for gambling addiction services, NHS England has opened 15 gambling clinics across the country since 2019 – seven of which opened in the last year.
NHS gambling service teams are made up of psychologists, therapists, psychiatrists, mental health nurses and people who have recovered from gambling addiction.
They not only provide help to those struggling with gambling themselves, but also those close to them, such as family, partners, and carers.
Around 138,000 people could be problem gambling according to Gambling Commission figures, with around a further 1.3 million people engaging in either moderate or low-risk gambling – although other research estimates that this figure could be even higher. With latest figures showing more than a quarter (27 percent) of 11- to 17-year-olds had spent their own money on gambling activity in the last year.
Notes
- Gambling clinics are in in Sheffield, London, Milton Keynes, Thurrock, Bristol, Derby, Liverpool ,Preston, Leeds, Newcastle, Manchester, Southampton, Stoke-on-Trent, and Telford, as well as a national children and young people’s clinic based in London.
- Referrals to NHS gambling clinics in Q1&2 of 2023/24 was 836, and in Q1&2 of 24/25 was 1,914
