Report
Gambling Survey for Great Britain - Wave 1, January to May 2026 report: Official statistics
Gambling Survey for Great Britain - Wave 1, January to May 2026 report
Response to this survey
Address-level response rates
Table A.1 (Address-level response) summarises the address-level response rates
| Response of issued addresses | Total addresses (number) | Total addresses (percentage) | Total eligible (percentage) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Issued addresses | 21,750 | 100% | Not applicable |
| Assumed ineligible | 1,958 | 9% | Not applicable |
| Assumed eligible (residential addresses) | 19,793 | 91% | 100% |
| Refusal or unable to take part | 29 | 0% | 0% |
| No response | 16,090 | 74% | 81% |
| No response | 16,090 | 74% | 81% |
| Productive addresses | 3,674 | 17% | 19% |
In total, 21,750 addresses were issued. In remote surveys (that is where participants complete the survey independently without any involvement from an interviewer), no information is known about the reason for non-response in individual addresses. However, it was assumed that 9% of addresses in the sample (1,958) were not residential and were therefore ineligible to complete the survey1.
In total, 3,674 addresses were productive. The adjusted address-level response rate, that is the proportion of eligible addresses where a questionnaire was completed by at least one adult, was 19%. There was no response from 16,090 addresses and a further 29 addresses had an individual contact to the office to say they did not wish or were unable to take part.
Table A.2 (Address-level response, by country and Government Office Region) shows the breakdown of the issued sample in England, Scotland, and Wales, and English regions and the household response rate in each country and region. In total, 86% of the issued addresses were in England, 9% in Scotland and 5% in Wales. The household response rate was 18% in England, 20% in Scotland and 20% in Wales. In English regions2, the highest response rate was achieved in the South East and South West (21%) and the lowest in London (14%).
Table A.2: Address-level response, by country and Government office region
| Country or Government office region | Total issued addresses (number) | Total issued addresses (percentage) | Total assumed eligible addresses (number) | Total assumed eligible addresses (percentage) | Total productive addresses (number) | Household response rate (percentage) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| England | 18,671 | 86% | 16,991 | 86% | 3,112 | 18% |
| North East | 939 | 4% | 854 | 4% | 158 | 18% |
| North West | 2,521 | 12% | 2,294 | 12% | 379 | 17% |
| Yorkshire and the Humber | 1,840 | 8% | 1,674 | 8% | 302 | 18% |
| East Midlands | 1,619 | 7% | 1,473 | 7% | 270 | 18% |
| West Midlands | 1,907 | 9% | 1,735 | 9% | 327 | 19% |
| East of England | 2,078 | 10% | 1,891 | 10% | 377 | 20% |
| London | 2,786 | 13% | 2,535 | 13% | 364 | 14% |
| London | 2,786 | 13% | 2,535 | 13% | 364 | 14% |
| South East | 3,022 | 14% | 2,750 | 14% | 565 | 21% |
| South East | 3,022 | 14% | 2,750 | 14% | 565 | 21% |
| South West | 1,959 | 9% | 1,783 | 9% | 370 | 21% |
| Scotland | 2,007 | 9% | 1,826 | 9% | 366 | 20% |
| Scotland | 2,007 | 9% | 1,826 | 9% | 366 | 20% |
| Wales | 1,072 | 5% | 976 | 5% | 196 | 20% |
| All addresses | 21,750 | 100% | 19,793 | 100% | 3,674 | 19% |
Individual-level response rates
Following the process of removing duplicate responses3, cases deemed to have completed the online questionnaire too quickly to have properly engaged with the questions, and cases above the maximum 2 completions per household4, it was assumed that all responses in the dataset were from 5,277 unique individuals who had completed the questionnaire.
In total, 45% of the responding unweighted sample were male, and 55% were female, as shown in Table A.3 (Individual-level response, by sex and age). This under-representation of males is similar to that seen in the latest published results for other surveys with the same completion modes, for example, - the British Social Attitudes (BSA) 2022 survey - BSA 40 Technical details(opens in new tab)(pdf).
Those in the youngest age group were the least likely to take part: 5% of responding adults were aged 18 to 24, whereas this age group makes up 11% of the adult population of Great Britain. Conversely, 18% of responding adults were aged 65 to 74, whereas this group makes up 12% of the population. (Table A.3 Individual-level response, by age and sex).
This difference in taking part was particularly pronounced among male participants aged 18 to 24. Men aged 18 to 24 accounted for 4% of the male sample (this age-sex group makes up 11% of the male adult population of Great Britain). The equivalent proportions for females were 6% in the sample and 10% in the population aged 18 to 24. In contrast, males aged 65 to 74 accounted for 20% of the male sample (this age-sex group makes up 12% of the male adult population of Great Britain). The national percentages are based on the 2023 mid-year population estimates for Great Britain: Estimates of the population for the UK, England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) (opens in a new tab).
Table A.3: Individual-level response, by sex and age
| Age group (years) | Total participants: male (percentage) | Total participants: female (percentage) | Total participants: all (percentage) | Total Great Britain population: adult males (percentage) | Total Great Britain population: adult females (percentage | Total Great Britain population: all adults (percentage) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 18 to 24 | 4% | 6% | 5% | 11% | 10 | 11% |
| 25 to 34 | 14% | 18% | 16% | 17% | 17 | 17% |
| 35 to 44 | 16% | 18% | 17% | 17% | 17% | 17% |
| 35 to 44 | 16% | 18% | 17% | 17% | 17% | 17% |
| 45 to 54 | 13% | 14% | 14% | 16% | 15% | 15% |
| 55 to 64 | 20% | 16% | 18% | 12% | 12% | 12% |
| 65 to 74 | 20% | 16% | 18% | 12% | 12% | 12% |
| 75 and over | 16% | 11% | 13% | 11% | 13% | 12% |
| All participants | 45% | 55% | 100% | 48% | 52% | 100% |
| Unweighted bases (number) | 2,382 | 2,876 | 5,258 | 25,899,136 | 27,630,798 | 53,529,934 |
Table A.4 (Individual-level response, by mode of completion and sex) shows response rates by mode of completion, overall and for males and females separately. Overall, 70%(3,6815) completed the survey online and 30% (1,596) completed a postal questionnaire. These results are broadly in line with expectations, based on the development stages of the GSGB.
Table A.4: Individual-level response, by mode of completion and sex
| Sex | Individual-level response: Online completions (percentage) | Individual-level response: Postal completions (percentage) | Individual-level response: Total completions (percentage) | Individual-level response: Total completions (number) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Males | 70% | 30% | 45% | 2,382 |
| Females | 70% | 30% | 55% | 2,876 |
| All participants | 70% | 30% | 100% | 5,258 |
| Unweighted bases (number) | 3,679 | 1,579 | 5,258 | 5,258 |
There was little difference between males and females in the mode of completion. In all age groups, except those aged 75 and over, a higher proportion of participants completed the survey online than filled in the postal questionnaire. Of those aged 75 and over, 40% completed the survey online compared with between 52% and 92% of those in the younger age groups as shown in Table A.5 (Individual-level response, by mode of completion and age).
Table A.5: Individual-level response, by mode of completion and age
| Age group (years) | Individual-level response: Online completions (percentage) | Individual-level response: Postal completions (percentage) | Individual-level response: Total completions (percentage) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 18 to 24 | 83% | 17% | 339 |
| 25 to 34 | 86% | 14% | 806 |
| 35 to 44 | 82% | 18% | 961 |
| 45 to 54 | 73% | 27% | 862 |
| 55 to 64 | 61% | 39% | 1,038 |
| 65 to 74 | 47% | 53% | 1,062 |
| 65 to 74 | 47% | 53% | 1,062 |
| 75 and over | 30% | 70% | 815 |
| All participants | 30% | 70% | 815 |
| Unweighted bases (number) | 3,759 | 2,124 | 5,883 |
The mode of survey completion was similar for those who participated in gambling in the past 4 weeks and those who did not, with 71% of those who participated in gambling in the past 4 weeks completing the survey online and 70% of those who did not, as shown in Table A.6 (Individual-level response, by mode of completion and gambling participation in the past 4 weeks).
Table A.6: Individual-level response, by mode of completion and gambling participation in the past 4 weeks
| Gambling prevalence in the past 4 weeks | Individual-level response: Online completions (percentage) | Individual-level response: Postal completions (percentage) | Individual-level response: Total completions (number) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gambled in the past 4 weeks | 65% | 35% | 2,828 |
| Not gambled in the past 4 weeks | 65% | 33% | 2,968 |
| Unweighted bases (number) | 3,757 | 2,039 | 5,796 |
References
1When estimating the proportion of ineligible addresses on an online survey, it is best practice to assume the same ineligibility rate as a recent face-to-face survey which uses the same sample frame and sampling approach and for which detailed outcomes are known for the entire issued sample. Ineligibility rates in Postcode Address File (PAF) face-to-face surveys tend to fall between 8% and 10% and 9% is the rate recorded in the most recent face-to-face British Social Attitudes Survey (2019) and so has been used as an appropriate default for this survey.
2Regions are shown only for England because the sample is so big, and the Scotland and Wales samples are equivalent to the size of an English region.
3Where a single participant completed the survey a second time.
4Where more than 2 people in a household completed the survey (for example, 2 completing the survey online and 2 different people completing postal questionnaires.
5Including 3 participants where sex could not be derived.
GSGB: Wave 1, January to May 2026 report - Content of this report Next section
GSGB: Wave 1, January to May 2026 report - Questionnaire completion times
Last updated: 17 September 2026
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