Gambling support services UK

Gambling support services UK: where to start

If gambling on a phone or tablet has started to cost more money, time or sleep than you meant it to, the quickest route to help is a phone call or chat with the National Gambling Helpline. The adviser listens, explains the options and can book you into free counselling or point you to an NHS clinic. You don't need to have reached any particular point, and you don't need to have stopped gambling first.

Around that helpline sits a wider network of services. Some treat the problem (counselling, NHS clinics, residential programmes), some put practical barriers in place (GAMSTOP, blocking software, bank blocks), some deal with the fallout (debt advice), and some exist purely for the people around a gambler. The table below is a starting map; the sections after it explain each one and how to reach it from your phone.

Every service in the table is free to use. None of them will tell a casino, your employer or your family that you have been in touch unless there is a serious safety concern.

The National Gambling Helpline: what happens when you call

The helpline is run by GamCare and answers calls on 0808 8020 133 around the clock, every day of the year. Calls are free from UK mobiles and landlines, and the same team runs an online chat if speaking out loud is harder, which it often is when you're sitting at home with people nearby. The NHS lists the helpline as its first point of contact for gambling problems.

A typical first contact is a conversation rather than an assessment. The adviser will ask what's been happening, how long it has been going on and what you'd like to change. If you want more than a single chat, they can arrange structured support, which might be several sessions of counselling by phone, online or face to face, depending on what is available near you. They can also explain self-exclusion, blocking tools and debt help, and they speak to partners and parents as well as gamblers.

1. Open your phone's Contacts app and create a new contact called something you'll recognise, such as National Gambling Helpline.
2. Add the number 0808 8020 133 and save it, so it's one tap away rather than something you have to search for.
3. If you prefer typing, bookmark GamCare's live chat page in Safari or Chrome and add it to your home screen.
4. Pick a moment when you have 15 to 20 minutes and some privacy; a parked car or a walk works for many people.
5. Call or start the chat and say as much or as little as you want. You can end the conversation at any time.

NHS gambling clinics and how to refer yourself

The NHS in England runs specialist gambling clinics for people whose gambling is causing serious harm, including those with related depression, anxiety, debt or relationship breakdown. The NHS website says you can refer yourself to a clinic near you, or ask your GP about local services. The clinics also offer support to family members and friends.

At the time of writing, the NHS lists these services in England:

• NHS National Centre for Behavioural Addictions, which includes the National Problem Gambling Clinic
• NHS Northern Gambling Service
• NHS Southern Gambling Service
• NHS West Midlands Gambling Harms Clinic
• NHS East Midlands Gambling Harms Clinic
• NHS East of England Gambling Service
• NHS South West Gambling Service

Treatment usually involves talking therapies such as cognitive behavioural therapy, either one to one or in groups, and many appointments can be held by video call. There is normally a short assessment before treatment starts. Waiting times vary by region, so it's worth calling the helpline while you wait: support from one doesn't rule out the other.

In Scotland and Wales, the NHS is organised separately. Your GP is the simplest route in, and the National Gambling Helpline can tell you what is available where you live.

Peer support and lived-experience groups

Some people find it easier to talk to someone who has been through the same thing. Gamblers Anonymous runs local and online meetings based on a 12-step approach; there's no fee and no need to book. GamLEARN (the Gambling Lived Experience and Recovery Network) connects people in recovery, and ChapterOne offers advice and online support for anyone experiencing gambling harms. The NHS also lists a national Primary Care Gambling Service for anyone affected.

Peer groups work alongside professional treatment rather than replacing it. Many people use both: a weekly meeting for company and accountability, and counselling or an NHS clinic for structured therapy.

Most groups now meet on video as well as in person, so you can join from the same phone that holds your casino apps. If the app icons are a reminder you don't want, our guides to blocking gambling apps on iPhone and blocking gambling apps on Android explain how to remove them properly.

Self-exclusion and blocking tools that work on your phone

Support services often suggest adding practical barriers while the harder work of treatment goes on. On a phone, there are several layers, and they are strongest when combined.

GAMSTOP is the UK's national online self-exclusion scheme. Once registered, every operator licensed by the Gambling Commission must stop you opening or using an account, and that applies inside apps as well as on websites. A step-by-step walkthrough of self-excluding in a casino app and the GAMSTOP glossary entry cover the detail.

Blocking software and bank blocks fill gaps GAMSTOP doesn't cover, such as unlicensed sites. Our comparison of gambling blocking apps and the guide to bank gambling blocks explain how each one is switched on.

Debt and money advice for gambling-related problems

Gambling problems and money problems tend to arrive together, and debt can make it harder to stop. Free, regulated debt advice is available from Citizens Advice and National Debtline, both of which the NHS points to. A debt adviser can help you list what you owe, deal with creditors, and look at formal options if needed. Avoid any company that charges fees to manage debt when free services do the same job.

A few practical points help straight away:

• Turn on your bank's gambling block if it has one. Most app-based banks put it under card settings.
• Ask a trusted person to hold any savings access codes for a while, if that feels right.
• Don't borrow to cover gambling losses, and don't gamble to try to clear a debt. Losses are the likely result over time because every game has a built-in house edge.
• Keep copies of statements; a debt adviser will want to see them.

If you've been asked for bank statements or payslips by a casino app, that's a separate process called an affordability or source-of-funds check. Our explainer on affordability checks in casino apps covers what operators ask for and why.

Support for family, partners and friends

People close to a gambler often carry a lot: worry, money stress, broken trust. Support exists for them regardless of whether the person gambling wants help. Helpline advisers take calls from family and friends, NHS gambling clinics can support them directly, GamAnon runs meetings for relatives and friends, and GamFam is a peer network set up by families with lived experience. Gambling with Lives supports families bereaved by gambling-related suicide.

If you're working out how to raise the subject, the page on talking to someone about their gambling app use suggests ways to open the conversation, what to avoid saying, and how to protect your own finances. For warning signs that are specific to phones, see signs a casino app is affecting you.

If you're in crisis: urgent help, day or night

Gambling harm can bring on intense distress, especially after a large loss or when debts come to light. If you feel you might harm yourself, or you are worried about someone else's safety, treat it as an emergency.

1. If someone is in immediate danger, call 999.
2. For urgent mental health help in England, call NHS 111 and choose the mental health option, or use NHS 111 online.
3. To talk to someone at any hour, call Samaritans free on 116 123.
4. Once the immediate crisis has passed, call the National Gambling Helpline on 0808 8020 133 to arrange ongoing support.

You don't have to explain the gambling in a crisis call if you don't want to. Getting safe comes first; the gambling support can follow.

What changed in 2025 and 2026: the levy and GambleAware's closure

For years, much of the UK's gambling treatment was paid for by voluntary donations from the industry, distributed by the charity GambleAware. That changed with a statutory levy on gambling operators, introduced in 2025, which channels money into research, prevention and treatment through government and NHS bodies instead.

GambleAware closed on 31 March 2026, and its commissioning role moved to government. Its old website and helpline branding may still appear in older apps, leaflets and adverts, but it is no longer a current service. GamCare has said it remains committed to running the National Gambling Helpline through the transition, so the number 0808 8020 133 is the one to use.

For anyone looking for help, the practical message is simple: the helpline, NHS clinics, GAMSTOP and the peer groups are all still there. If a casino app's safer gambling page still names GambleAware, that's an out-of-date link rather than a sign that support has gone.

Safer gambling tools inside a casino app

Every UK-licensed casino app must offer tools that let you control your own play. They aren't a substitute for support, but they work instantly and are worth setting up alongside it. Typically you'll find them under the account or profile icon, in a section called Safer Gambling, Responsible Gaming or Play Safe.

• Deposit limits: a daily, weekly or monthly cap. Lowering one takes effect straight away; raising it involves a waiting period.
• Reality checks: a pop-up at set intervals showing how long you've played and your net position.
• Time-outs: a short lock of your account, from a day to several weeks.
• Self-exclusion: a longer block of at least six months for that operator.

Our overview of casino app limits walks through where each tool sits and what happens when you change it.

Which UK gambling support service fits your situation

There is no wrong door. Any of these services will redirect you if another fits better. Still, a few starting points suit particular situations.

Many people use two or three of these together. A common pattern is GAMSTOP and a bank block on day one, a helpline call the same week, and counselling or a clinic referral after that. Our broader responsible gambling page explains how the safer gambling side of this site works.

18+. Gambling should be entertainment that costs money, not a way to make it. Set a deposit limit before you play: how to set limits. Free, confidential help: National Gambling Helpline 0808 8020 133.