Gambling spending among 11 to 17 year olds in Great Britain falls

The number of children in Great Britain spending their own money on gambling is falling, while almost all of them are exposed to gambling marketing. The Gambling Commission published its official Young People and Gambling 2026 statistics on 12 November. In a survey of 3,867 students, 26% said they had spent their own money on gambling in the past year. This rate was 30% in the 2025 survey and 31% in 2022.

Most of the spending was not on products legally restricted to adults. Only 5% of students used their own money on age-restricted gambling products. Ben Haden, the Commission's Research and Statistics Director, said that preventing children from spending money on such products is the priority.

Exposure to advertising tells a different story. 89% of students recalled seeing some form of gambling marketing in the past year. Boys reported seeing more adverts on various platforms than girls. In addition, 22% of children aged 11 to 17 have used their own money to open virtual loot or mystery boxes.

Emily Tofield, chief executive of Ygam, welcomed the drop in participation among under-18s. However, she warned that adverts and loot boxes are leading to gambling being seen as normal at an early age. In the survey's risk measurement, 2.0% of students scored in the range the Commission classifies as "at risk".

The survey's methodology is also a matter of debate, however. Critic Dan Waugh argues that surveys completed in class, alongside peers, may produce misleading answers. Waugh said he does not find it credible that the data suggests more than 32,000 English students play casino table games each year. He also noted that 125 of the 228 children who said advertising encouraged them to gamble had not spent any money during the year.

The figures will be at the centre of debates on age checks, advertising rules and tighter regulation for operators. Safer Gambling Week will take place from 16 to 22 November.