Gamstop hails wide awareness of gambling exclusion tools in the UK
Self-exclusion registrations are up by 100,000 in the last 11 months.
UK.- The charity Gamstop has highlighted the growing awareness of responsible gambling tools in the UK as all-time registrations with its national self-exclusion scheme surpassed 600,000. The number of active registrations rose by 100,000 registrations over the past 11 months.
Gamstop says that 525,000 people remain actively excluded from online gambling platforms via its service. That’s approximately 1 per cent of the UK’s adult population.
“Such unprecedented growth in registrations indicates a widespread need for self-exclusion and highlights the crucial role of the gambling harm prevention, education, treatment and support sector,” it said. “We are proud to have formed strong, collaborative relationships with a wide range of organisations to help ensure that we provide signposting to a robust network of support to our service users.”
Gamstop said that from October 25, it will begin archiving older user data linked to exclusions that expired more than seven years ago. Going forward, it will use active exclusions as its core measurement of gambling-related harm, stating this will provide a more accurate reflection of current trends.
Meanwhile, major changes are afoot in how UK gambling support services are funded. The government imposed a mandatory gambling levy in April, which will be used to fund Research, Education, and Treatment (RET). The NHS has been designated as the commissioner of RET services and will collaborate with the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities (OHID).
As a result, GambleAware will cease operating by March 2026. The body was founded in 2017 and was funded by voluntary industry donations.
