Underage gambling in UK is decreasing

A survey conducted in the UK by Ipsos MORI at the behest of the National Lottery shows that latest figures for 11-15 year olds who say they played National Lottery games have dropped from 7 percent last year to an all-time low of 5 percent in 2013, whilst the overall rate of gambling by 11-15 year olds has declined from 18 percent to 15 percent.

The researchers quizzed 11-16 year olds to identify the prevalence of underage gambling on National Lottery and other forms of gambling, where and how National Lottery tickets are bought, how much young players spend on Lotto and the extent to which parents play a role in children’s exposure to the National Lottery.

The findings are based on data from a representative sample of 2,595 11-16 year olds attending schools in England and Wales, with pupils filling out paper self-completion questionnaires under supervision by Ipsos MORI’s interviewers. The report focuses on children aged 11-15 who are not legally old enough to play the National Lottery, but also draws on results from children aged 16 for comparative purposes.

The report presents findings from the 2013 Young People Omnibus Survey of secondary school pupils, carried out by the Ipsos MORI Social Research Institute on behalf of the National Lottery Commission.

Fieldwork for the study was conducted between 1 February and 18 April 2013. Of the 575 schools approached, 108 schools participated, giving an unadjusted school response rate of 19 percent. Overall, fully completed questionnaires were obtained from 2,595 pupils.

See the full report here: http://www.natlotcomm.gov.uk/assets-uploaded/documents/Underage-Gambling-Prevalence-2013.pdf