Charity Navigates the Final Year of the Voluntary Levy System, Securing New Funding Under Statutory Commissioning Arrangements
GamCare has released its 2025/26 Trustee’s Annual Report, detailing a period of high-quality support delivered across Great Britain during the most significant structural transition in the charity’s history. Covering the final financial year of the voluntary levy system ahead of new statutory levy commissioning introduced in April 2026, the report emphasizes uninterrupted, compassionate care for individuals affected by gambling-related harms.
Operational Reach and Treatment Impact
Between April 2025 and March 2026, GamCare’s prevention, education, and outreach initiatives reached 17,100 people before harms escalated. This included training more than 2,100 professionals across diverse sectors, such as health and social care, criminal justice, financial services, and the Armed Forces, to better recognize and address gambling-related issues.
When individuals sought active assistance, the National Gambling Helpline and its online services responded to over 114,000 contacts, facilitating more than 11,400 onward referrals into structured treatment and 17,700 connections to wider support services. Key treatment highlights from the annual report include:
- Rapid Assessments: Clients received full assessments within an average of 2.4 days.
- Treatment Volume: GamCare delivered over 10,300 support sessions across the year for 2,811 clients, maintaining continuity by pairing individuals with the same practitioner whenever possible.
- Positive Outcomes: Nearly 97% of individuals completing treatment reported a positive change in their personal circumstances.
- Clinical Improvement: Average scores on standard clinical measures of gambling harm dropped sharply from 14.4 at the start of treatment down to 3.3 at completion, while separate psychological distress scores more than halved.
Independent Accreditation and Leadership Insights
Independent assessments conducted by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) confirmed that GamCare’s helpline, treatment, and outreach services are safe, effective, caring, responsive, and well-led, operating entirely free from gambling industry influence. Additionally, the National Gambling Helpline secured a three-year certification renewal under the Helplines Standard by the Helplines Partnership, reinforcing its clinical credibility as the charity successfully secured new commissioner funding in England and Scotland.
Margot Daly, Chair of Trustees at GamCare, commented:
“The Board’s priority throughout was to keep the quality of services at the centre of every decision. Independent CQC assessments found GamCare’s National Gambling Helpline, treatment and outreach services to be safe, effective, caring, responsive and well led, with care focused on the needs and preferences of the people who use them. After nearly three decades in this sector, we know that periods of change are when quality and continuity matter most, and as we continue delivering in England and Scotland under the new arrangements, that is where our focus will stay.”
Victoria Corbishley, Chief Executive at GamCare, added:
“Behind every one of this year’s 114,000 contacts to the National Gambling Helpline and its online services, is a person who chose to ask for support – often for the first time. Whether that begins with a call at two in the morning, a live chat during a lunch-break, or a message sent in private, our role is the same: to listen without judgement and help each person take the next step that is right for them. That same care runs through to treatment. This year, people were assessed within days and nearly 97% told us it brought positive change in their lives. We enter the new commissioning landscape with a clear mandate, a proven model and an unwavering commitment to the people we serve.”
For anyone seeking confidential assistance, the National Gambling Helpline is available 24/7 by calling 0808 8020 133 or via online live chat.
