In recent years, harms inflicted by gambling have become an increasing public health concern. They can include financial harms, harms to relationships and harms to health. They can also extend beyond the individuals who gamble and can affect others – especially partners and children – as well as wider family and social networks. Men and young people who gamble are more likely to experience severe and direct harms.
According to the Gambling Survey for Great Britain (2023) approximately half (48%) of the adult population participates in some form of gambling.
The Institute of Public Care has worked with Wiltshire Council’s Public Health Team to explore the prevalence and awareness of gambling harms from a public health perspective in the county.
The research involved three key activities:
- A desk-based review to identify nationally available intelligence about the prevalence and characteristics of gambling harms.
- A scoping survey of professional stakeholders to capture awareness and perception of the nature and scale of gambling harms in Wiltshire.
- Interviews with professionals to provide a deeper understanding of the scale and distribution of risks across socio-demographic groups, gaps in support, and opportunities for system-wide collaboration in Wiltshire.
Key findings from the scoping survey indicated variable levels of awareness among professional stakeholders about gambling harms. Gambling harms can remain hidden for a long time because of stigma, complex needs with multiple vulnerabilities, and insufficient identification and recording systems.